After the Ashes
by Dreaming Egypt
Summary: A woman running from her past tries to find a place to call her own. Will she end up running again or is there something in Texas she needs more than to keep her secrets?
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer:** As always, I do not own any of the names or likenesses you may or may not recognize._

_**Rating: **Just to be on the safe side, I'm gonna call this an **M** if for no other reason than language. However, I have no way of knowing what depths of perversion my brain may take this into. We'll see..._

_**Author's Note:** Yep, another story. I apologize to everyone who has read my other contributions to the site and are digging at me to write more. This is what happens when I end up with writer's block. I start something new. I'll get back to them, I PROMISE! lol At any rate, I hope ya like this one too. _

* * *

He looked up from his half empty glass as the door swung in on its rusty old hinges. It wasn't who he thought it would be. Apparently she'd taken the hint this time. The crazy girl had finally realized when he said "leave me alone", he meant it.

What had walked in though, captured his attention nicely. There was no face to be seen just yet, the setting sun outside the place made sure of that. All he could see was long hair and longer legs, incased in leather.

"Hey Mark?" He heard from behind him.

"Yeah..." He answered, half drunk, without taking his eyes off the woman seating herself alone at a table toward the back.

"You still runnin a tab or what?" Mark didn't answer. "Because, at this rate, you're gonna have to sign all those pretty bikes over to me, big guy."

Big guy... Mark hated it when Denny called him that. As far as he could tell, the bartender called everyone big guy and for as long as he'd been sitting on the same stool, he figured he deserved something better.

"Denny..." He started, swiveling around on his stool to face his old friend. "I'll settle up when I'm damned good and ready. You just keep pouring. Okay?" The bartender chuckled good-naturedly and scratched at his salt and pepper beard.

"Yeah, that's what I figured." He refilled the big man's glass.

"Hey Den, you know that little girl over there?" Mark finally asked his face coloring slightly to match his hair. The old bartender glanced up from the bottles he was marrying and raised an eyebrow.

"What about what's her name?" He asked.

"What's her name?" Mark laughed. "You mean Kristy? My guess is she's half way back to Buffalo by now."

"That was quick. You know, since you left Sara..."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah... Don't say it." Mark waved a tattooed arm over the bar. Denny laughed shaking his head. "So do you know her or not?"

"She's been in here a few times lately." The bartender said noncommittally.

"Well that is so helpful..." Mark grumbled and tipped back his glass before motioning to Denny to fill it up again.

"Jesus Mark, if you're that interested why don't you just go talk to her." The big man made a face like he'd eaten something rancid.

"Nah... I'm not up to being shot down today. I've had enough of that lately..."

"Well, there _was Kristy_..."

"Would you just shut up?" Mark grumbled and tossed a twenty down on the bar as he got up and headed over to a vacant pool table.

* * *

Cassie spoke briefly to the tired looking waitress as she took her order. It had been a long day. Too much time spent on the road and not on the right transportation. She hated moving. More to the point however, she hated losing her life. Once again she'd trusted the wrong person and gotten hurt. Texas wasn't so bad though. She could get used to it here.

She took a deep breath, slowly undid the braid she'd been wearing, and let her head roll back. Her dark hair cascaded down nearly to the floor over her rickety old chair. Yeah, Texas was okay. She'd managed to obtain a little piece of land outside Houston without much problem. Money wasn't ever an issue.

The waitress returned with her drink. Cassie smiled. She'd been in this town maybe two weeks and they already knew how she liked it. She grinned; this place was definitely okay.

"Hey there darlin..." The bartender chirped when she finally made eye contact. She waved comfortably and flashed him her nicest smile. Cassie loved to watch him blush. If she knew one thing, she knew people, and this guy was okay. He was probably a redneck, and a pervert, hell, he was a bartender, but he was all right.

Slowly, she swirled her rum and coke and stretched as she scanned the rest of the bar. Cassie had been in this place maybe five times since she gotten into her new house and every single one of the patrons had been here every time she'd come in. It made her feel welcome in a strange sort of way. She always knew what to expect here, it had become a welcome part of her daily rituals.

"Could you toss that back here?" She glanced up over the book she had just started reading, then down to the white cue ball resting comfortably in a divot in the floor directly under her table.

Cassie stretched down and picked it up before climbing out of her chair and walking it over to the tall man standing, leaned comfortably on a pool cue, near a table.

"There ya go." She grinned and set the ball down against a rail.

"Thank you." He said simply. She was momentarily caught in his green eyes. Cassie nodded and headed back to her table and waiting book to catch her breath.

"Where did that come from?" She whispered to herself as she watched the huge red headed man reach for a shot over the table. Cassie couldn't believe she missed him when she came in. How could you miss him? He had to be seven feet tall!

The brunette shook herself out of her daydream and tried to go back to her book.

* * *

Mark leaned further over his table than necessary to make his shot. The damned support pillar was blocking his view. From here, all he could see was a big black boot planted on the chair across from her. He rolled his eyes and eased his cue back to make the shot. There was a slight click as the cue glanced off the white ball and sent it rolling feebly out into the green.

"Damn it..." He growled to himself, cursing his lack of concentration. "Keep your eye on the game old man..." He finished and set himself up another shot. Mark leaned in again and aimed. Glancing over his shoulder he could see the side of her face. She was watching him. Mark smiled to himself and let the cue slide smoothly before letting it go. The cue ball smacked neatly into the eight and sent it rolling into the corner pocket. The big red head stood up and knocked all the rest of the balls back into the pockets.

"Denny, set me up another one would ya?" He called over to the bartender as he leaned his cue against the wall with the rest of them.

"You better give me your keys there Deadman..." Denny chuckled and slid a beer down the bar.

"No, you will not get my keys and what the hell is this?" He asked pointing at the bottle.

"This is my way of getting you home safely." The bartender grinned. Mark muttered something derogatory at his old friend but drank it anyway.

"Speaking of getting me home..." Mark started looking down at his watch. "I'd better do that before it gets too late. I've got to leave early in the morning."

"How long are you gone for this time?"

"Just overnight. We've got a show in Amarillo tomorrow. I'm probably just going to come home for the night after." Mark said as he stretched and yawned.

"Guess I'll see you tomorrow then, eh big guy?" Mark grimaced visibly when he called him big guy.

"Unless the crazy bitch hasn't gotten out of my house yet, then I'll be back to borrow the cot in the back again." He laughed. Denny rolled his eyes and waved him off.

"Just get home safe. I'll see ya tomorrow." Denny called out as his friend shuffled toward the door. "Oh hey, am I supposed to put this on your tab too?" He said waggling the empty beer bottle toward Mark.

"Hey Den, you can shove that up yer ass." He laughed. "I'll see ya tomorrow." Mark was chuckling as he pushed through the door.

Denny shook his head and ran some water to wash his dishes.

"Oh and Den?" He heard Mark's voice.

"I thought you left." He said without turning around.

"Find out what you can find out about..." He trailed off.

"Hey Mark, shove that up yer ass old man."

"I ain't old." He smirked knowing his friend would do what he could about the strange brunette and finally let the door swing shut behind him.

* * *

Cassie bit her lip as the big red head walked out the front door. She lost her chance to make contact. Normally, she wasn't like that. The brunette was fresh out of a relationship but she found herself nearly compelled to talk to him. Silently, she berated herself for not making her move and got up, almost nervously and walked over to the bar.

"Hey there beautiful, somethin I can do for ya?" Denny said in his best bartender voice when she tapped her glass on the smooth wood.

"Oh, uh... no I'm alright." She responded.

"New in town are ya?" Cassie nodded. "Yeah, I figured. People around here tend to stay around here, so when someone new shows up we notice." He chuckled. Cassie laughed good-naturedly with him. "So, where'd you come from?" He said after a long and slightly uncomfortable silence.

"I came here from New Mexico." Denny nodded as if he'd heard it all a thousand times.

"Yeah, it's nice there but Texas is always Texas. Stay here for a while darlin, you'll call it home too."

"I hope so. I've moved around too much lately." She said wistfully.

"I can guess you ain't from the south. You've got an accent." Cassie nearly choked as she sipped her drink.

"I've got an accent?"

"Yeah, ya do. Midwestern I'd have to say."

"Good guess." She smiled and accepted a second drink. "I'm from Detroit originally."

"A bad girl eh?" He teased and rested his elbows on the bar. Cassie blushed and shook her long dark mane.

"Hardly. Just a girl from the city trying to get out."

"Well, this sure ain't Detroit."

"You can say that again. You've got trees here."

"So what brought you here?" Denny finally asked, trying to dig for Mark.

"Oh, that's a long story…" She answered with a note of dread in her voice.

"Men trouble eh?"

"What are you psychic?" She laughed.

"Could be, I'm a bartender." Cassie nodded softly unable, for some reason, to argue with the logic of it.

"Let's just say, we had a difference of opinion. He thought he could handle two girlfriends, and I thought he was an asshole." She smiled wryly. "So I pulled out my map, pointed to a spot, and ended up here. I don't even know if he knows I'm gone yet."

"My guess is he knows by now."

"I doubt it…" Cassie said shaking her head. "He disappears for a couple of weeks at a time."

"I guess it's a good thing you got out of there then." Cassie downed half her drink and tapped the glass against the bar in agreement.

"So here I am, in a new place with my bike and my little trailer in the middle of nowhere, and well, that's about it."

"Lookin for a job?" He asked. Cassie shook her head.

"Money isn't really an issue." She said absently. "But I might find a job if I get bored."

"Well then…" Denny said, his eyes wide. "Sounds to me like you've got it all figured out."

Cassie opened her mouth to say something but was cut short by the ringing phone. Denny muttered an apology and hurried over to answer it.

"Damn it girl…" She sighed to herself. Why couldn't she just get up the nerve to ask about that big red head? It wasn't a big deal; she just wanted to know… Well, she didn't quite know what she wanted.

"I'm sorry little darlin, I don't know what he'd do without me." Denny was chuckling as he walked back over to her.

"A friend of yours?" She asked taking her newly refilled glass.

"Oh yeah, a long time customer. He thinks I'm his surrogate father or something." He smiled. "… Now you think you have relationship problems, you haven't seen Mark's track record." Cassie raised an eyebrow. "Since he found his ex wife in bed with someone else, well I shouldn't go airing his dirty laundry. Besides, he'll be here shortly to borrow my back room again. You can ask him yourself." He giggled.

"You let him sleep here?"

"Oh yeah. Anytime he has a falling out with whoever he's with he'll show up here a little before closing time with a bag packed and that 'I screwed up' look on his face." Cassie laughed out loud in spite of herself.

"Okay…" She started taking a deep breath before changing the subject completely. "Now that I've had a couple of drinks I can ask you this." She was blushing again. "Who was that big guy that was in here a little earlier?" Denny nearly dropped the glass he was wiping.

"Big guy?"

"The one you were talking to before I came up here." She pressed again feeling horribly childish for prodding his friend for information.

"Really tall…red hair…all kinds of tattoos?" He asked.

"That would be the one."

"Well, you could ask him yourself. He'll be here in a few minutes." Denny smiled.

"He's the one coming to sleep in your back room?" Cassie blurted. "Leave it to me to find the one with more baggage than me."

"He's not so bad." Denny started. "He's out of town a lot, most women can't deal with that. I think that's most of his problem." Cassie nodded and rested her elbow on the bar.

"Just…forget I said anything." She grumbled and emptied her glass. "I guess I should get going anyway. I've still got lots of unpacking to do." She said fumbling for an excuse to leave. The old bartender nodded stoically and smiled.

"Do what you got to do darlin. I'll see you tomorrow I'm sure."

"Yeah, thanks…uh…"

"Denny." The older bartender smiled.

"Denny. I'm Cassie." She smiled back.

"Good to finally meet ya darlin." Cassie nodded and dropped a ten on the bar.  
"Keep the change…"

"I thank ya. Don't be a stranger. Now that I know you're name you're a regular." He chuckled as he turned back to washing out the glasses. Cassie gave him an awkward 'thumbs up' and hurried out of the bar.

"Yeah, leave it to you Cassie…" She chided herself. "Always have to find the ones that are trouble."

"Careful!" Cassie snapped her head up at the word. There stood the big redhead with a duffel bag over his shoulder inches from her face.

"Uh…Sorry, I guess I wasn't watching where I was going." She stammered as he stared down silently at her.

"No problem." His green eyes were still locked on her.

"Well, bye." She blurted and hurried past him to her bike.

"That's a hell of a bike you've got there." He said as she threw her leg over her black and red Night train.

"Uh… Thanks." She blushed and hoped to God it was dark enough that he didn't notice. The big man nodded and after another long look at her, turned toward the bar and went inside.

"Oh my God…" Cassis grumbled to herself and crossed her arms over her handlebars. "Could that have gone any worse?" She finished putting her head down. "Probably." She told herself before kicking over the bike and tearing out of the gravel parking lot and onto the road.

* * *

"You let her leave?" Mark chuckled as the door swung shut behind him.

"You didn't say kidnap her Deadman." Denny teased back.

"Den, you've known me long enough to know my type."

"Oh please, your 'type' consists of whoever happens to be standing closest at the time. I don't want to hear about your 'type', Taker." Denny finished making little quotes in the air.

"Do me a favor." Mark asked. "Shut up." He chuckled and wandered around to the back of the bar.

"What the hell do you think your doin'?" Denny asked indignantly.

"Makin myself a drink. I figure this is the only way it won't get watered down." Mark laughed and poured a healthy double shot of Jack Daniels.

"You know, if you ever decide not to wrestle anymore, you could come back and take this place over for me when I retire."

"I thought that was already written into our friendship old man." Denny laughed and tossed his bar towel down under the sink.

"The only problem is, you'll drink more than you sell. When was the last time you saw me have a drink?" Mark was quiet for a long moment.

"You had a drink with me when I left Sara." He said quietly. Denny nodded.

"Yeah, I had that one drink sitting in front of me while you polished off a fifth and a half." He chuckled.

"You know Den, I never did nothing but treat her right." Mark said wistfully.

"I know Mark, it wasn't your fault." Denny tried to reassure him as he patted the big man on the arm.

"I guess she just couldn't handle it." Mark had a faraway look in his eyes. Denny hated that look. Anytime someone brought up Sara he'd get that look and it'd be hours before he'd act like himself again.

"Mark, it'd take a hell of a woman to put up with what you do for a living." Denny said. "One hell of a woman." The big man nodded.

"I'm only home maybe two months out of the year." He started. "How could I expect her not to feel neglected?"

"Mark… Don't do this to yourself again. It's been two years. It's time for you to let her go." The big man waved off his friend's advice and poured himself another shot.

"Don't worry; I'm not brooding, just thinking." He downed the shot.

"Good. Now don't wreck the place before morning." Denny said grabbing his keys from under the bar and heading toward the door. "And replace what you drink!" Mark chuckled and waved off his friend's stern look.

"Don't I always?" He grinned. Denny rolled his eyes and walked out the door.


	2. Chapter 2

Sunlight poured through the uncurtained window in the front of Cassie's little trailer. She grunted and picked her head up from the half empty box she'd passed out on.

"I knew I should have thrown a sheet over that." She groaned and stood up stretching her back until it hurt.

She looked around and spied her little battery-powered clock. How could she possibly have slept through most of the day? It was already well after noon.

Maybe she'd ridden too long last night. Yes that had to be it. The road always took more out of her than she liked to admit.

Cassie yawned and, looking around at the stacks of boxes and piles of books and papers, grabbed her helmet, and walked out the front door.

The sun was hot overhead. Texas heat sure wasn't much like New Mexico and it was nothing like Detroit. Just another detail to get used to, she thought and unhooked the buckle on her saddlebag to find her sunglasses.

"What the hell?" She mumbled when tossed back the lid. There was an envelope with her name on it sitting neatly on top of her things.

Anxiety set in. With sweating palms she tore open the letter and started reading.

_Casey,_

_You can't hide forever. I know where you_

_are. See you soon._

"Jesus not again…" She muttered and stuffed the paper back into the envelope before climbing onto her bike and kicking over the engine.

"I'm not playing this game anymore…" She growled and gunned the throttle, tearing out down her dirt driveway and out onto the main road.

Cassie rode for miles, trying desperately to think of what to do. She had no one in this state. No one knew she was here. At least she thought no one knew. Apparently the one person she never wanted to find her again had.

She ground her teeth as she blew a red light. This was the last thing she needed. So many years she'd been hiding, moving city to city, state to state. No…not anymore. Finally, Cassie had found a place she liked. Maybe even some day, she could find herself loving Texas. The huge skies and endless stretches of unmarred country left her feeling peaceful and smiling when ever she looked out her little windows. He was not taking this place away from her too. Oh no, this was the last stand.

Taking a deep breath, Cassie pulled a sharp left and headed toward town. There had to be a sheriff or constable or something there. He wasn't going to intimidate her again. Cassie didn't care how he threatened her this time, it was done; she was done.

Suddenly, she felt relieved. Her decision was made and she found herself smiling. She was almost giddy. She knew what was going to happen.

Once upon a time, Cassie had promised herself she would never get the police involved, but there didn't seem to be much left to do. He'd followed her across four states and easily a dozen cities. Here she was, twenty-five years old and running for her life. It had to stop. It was going to stop.

The brunette turned another corner and saw the big sign with the star on it hanging above the door. Steering her bike up to the curb out front she cut the engine and pulled off her helmet before walking up to the door.

Hesitating, she took a deep shuddering breath and pushed inside. The artificial cold of the air conditioning took her breath away but she recovered and took a moment to take in her surroundings. She had to chuckle. The office reminded her more of something akin to Andy Griffith than a modern police department. There was a small waiting area with a few wooden chairs and a half wall blocking people from a small empty wooden desk with a telephone, a computer, and what looked to be a HAM radio setup. Just beyond the desk, was a battered wooden door with a wired glass window. Cassie assumed it led to the cells, if a place this small even had cells.

"Can I help ya ma'am?" A voice asked, shaking her out of her revelry. She had taken a seat and lost herself in the dust particles floating in the afternoon sunlight filtering between the blinds.

"Oh…um…yes, I think." She stammered and got to her feet to meet the uniformed man now standing in the doorway. "I…think I have a stalker." She blushed saying the words. It sounded so preposterous when she said it out loud.

"Ah, and what makes you think this?" The officer asked walking over to the half wall and opening a section she hadn't realized was a small swinging door. "Did you want to come sit down?" Cassie nodded and hurried past the man to a single chair in front of the desk.

"Well…" She started after he'd taken a seat. "I don't really know where to begin." That was an understatement. How could she put down into words everything he'd done to her over the years? How could she say that one person had forced her out of home after home? She was at a loss.

"Why don't we start with the most recent incident, ma'am?" He offered kindly and pulled out a pencil and a pad of yellow legal paper.

"Um…I found this in my saddle bag this morning." She handed him the slightly crumpled envelope she'd mashed into the inside pocket of her vest.

"Mm-hmmm." He said as he read the short typed note. "And this isn't the first of its kind?" He asked glancing up at her over it.

"This is the first time there has been a note. Other times, there have been more…subtle signs." As if finding her dog gutted and hanging in front of her front door was subtle.

"Have all of these happenings occurred here in Texas, Ms…"

"Light, Cassandra Light." She answered him.

"Ms. Light… Okay, let me see what I can find…" He muttered as he punched the keys on his computer. He made a slight clicking sound and looked up at her. "Well, I don't see any prior complaints in our data base, Ms. Light. Do you have a maiden name? Perhaps I could look under that."

"No, Light is my maiden name. I…uh…haven't really reported anything until now." She said, feeling guilty for some reason.

"How long have you suspected you were being followed, Ms. Light?" He said, his tone changing slightly.

"I…" Cassie began then sighed heavily and ran a hand over her face. "You know what, I'm probably being paranoid. I'm sorry; I think I'm wasting your time." She said standing up too quickly and nearly toppling the small, framed picture on the edge of the desk. "I'm sorry."

"Ma'am?" The officer asked cautiously. "If you think you're being watched, it'd probably be best to make a report. That way, if another incident occurs we already have something in our files. If we build a file we can have this person prosecuted more easily, if it comes to that."

"Uh… No…thank you. I…I think I should be going." She stuttered, her agitation visible in her face.

"Well, if it's all the same to you, ma'am, I'll just make a note of this letter for my records. I'll only be a minute." He stood and took her letter with him back through the old door.

Cassie took a deep shuddering breath and began pacing the little lobby. Why had she come here? What did she think these people could do for her? They certainly hadn't done anything to help her mother. She'd thought the police in Detroit could help her but where was she now?

"Okay Ms. Light…I went ahead and made a copy of this letter. I'm going to make a file under your name just in case anything should happen." His blue eyes were searching her face for something. She didn't know what.

"Yes…thank you." She mumbled and took her envelope from him jamming it back into her vest pocket.

"Do you have a number where we could contact you?" He asked.

"No, I just got to town a couple of weeks ago. I haven't gotten around to having a phone put in." She lied. Cassie only hoped the officer hadn't seen her cell phone hooked to her belt under her vest.

"Ah…" He said nodding his head. "We don't get a lot of strange people out here so, if anything out of the ordinary goes on, we take it pretty seriously. If something does come up, I'm sure I'll see you around town." He smiled and held out a hand for her to shake.

"Yeah, I'm sure I'll see you." She said absently taking his hand in her clammy one.

"Have a nice day young lady." He said finally and moved to open the half door for her.

"Uh huh, you too." She managed quickly and nearly bolted out the door.


	3. Chapter 3

"Alright Den… Set'em up." Mark said as he threw open the door to the bar.

"Bad night big guy?" Denny raised an eyebrow from behind the bar. Mark shook his head and tossed his bag down on a barstool.

"Nah, just a long drive. I'm thirsty." Mark chuckled as Denny poured him a beer and slid it across the bar.

"So…" Denny started, Mark knew the look in his eyes all too well.

"You've got something for me don't you?" He grinned. Denny laughed and pointed to the back of the bar.

"She's been here most of the day." Mark's eyes followed his friend's gesture. He frowned.

"She doesn't look so good." The big man noticed. Cassie was sitting at a table back against the wall staring down into a book with an untouched glass in front of her.

"I know… She showed up here about three o'clock looking like she'd seen a ghost. I can't get her to talk to me." The old bartender said gravely. "Maybe you should try and talk to her big man."

"Me? Why the hell would she talk to me?" Mark laughed.

"Because she wanted to talk to you last time you were here." Denny grinned. Mark's eyebrows shot up.

"Oh she did, did she?" Denny nodded.

"After you left she was asking me all kinds of questions about you."

"And you still let her leave?" Mark had the urge to hit his old friend.

"What was I supposed to do? Stamp her property of the Undertaker and haul her down to the basement until you were ready for her?" Denny was laughing.

"Just…shut up would you old man?" Mark grimaced at him. "I'm not that bad, am I?" Denny let out a low whistle.

"Why don't you go over there and see if there's anything you can do." His friend prodded.

"Doesn't it seem to you, that if she wanted to talk she'd come over here and do it?" Mark asked him pointedly as he swiveled his stool around to see her better. From what the two men could tell, she hadn't seen him come in. The brunette looked haggard, that was for sure but she was still beautiful. She sat with her booted foot hooked in the rung at the bottom of her chair leaned back with a book in front of her. Mark couldn't tell if she was reading it or just staring at the pages.

He watched as she picked up her obviously diluted drink and took a drink of it. She made a face at it and set down the book before getting up and walking toward the bar. Mark quickly turned back toward his friend.

* * *

"Hey Denny? Is there any way I could get another one of these? I guess I let this one get all melty."

"Sure thing Darlin…" Denny smiled and dumped her old drink before mixing her another one. "Are you okay?" He cautioned to ask as he slid the fresh drink over to her.

"Huh? Oh…uh…yeah, I'm alright." She stuttered without making eye contact.

"You sure? You don't look yourself today." The old bartender asked again. Cassie nodded and pounded half her drink. "Hell that doesn't say 'I'm okay' but if you say so." He shot a glance over at Mark. He was listening intently but for some reason Cassie hadn't noticed him yet.

She was standing right next to him, her back slightly angled in his direction but how could she not see him? She was almost on top of him.

"Mark? You need a refill?" Denny asked his friend.

"Yeah, why not."

Cassie's stomach dropped when she heard his voice.

"Well, thanks Denny. I'm gonna go finish unpacking I think." She said abruptly downing the rest of her drink and tossing a twenty down on the bar.

"See ya later darlin." He smiled. "Don't be a stranger." Mark watched as Cassie nodded and hurried out the door.

* * *

"What the hell as that about?" Denny asked his big friend. Mark shook his head. "First she didn't see ya at all, and then when she did, she disappeared like a virgin on prom night."

"I thought you said she wanted to talk to me."

"She did! She was pumping me for all kinds of information. I swear." Denny laughed.

"Ah hell, I guess she changed her mind."

"I doubt that. She looked like something was wrong big man." Denny raised an eyebrow toward the door then narrowed his eyes at his long time friend. He could already see the thought brewing in Mark's mind.

With a short nod, the big man stood up and hurried out the door. Denny could only chuckle to himself as he watched it slam shut behind him.

Mark pulled his sunglasses off his head when he walked through the door. The orange evening light was almost more than he could bear after the dark interior of the little bar.

Quickly, his eyes flew over the small parking lot and grinned softly to himself. She was still there all right, fumbling with her saddlebags and looking extremely irritated.

"You need a hand with that little girl?" He called over to her. She stopped dead.

"Uh…no, I've got it. Thank you." She responded without looking back. She tried desperately to sound airy and not at all as unnerved as she felt.

Mark sighed heavily and shook his head as he walked over to her.

"My name's Mark." He said after a few moments and held out his hand. Cassie glanced up at him and flinched, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink.

"Cassie." She returned and shook his hand before turning directly back to the buckle that had been giving her trouble.

"So…" Mark tried again somewhat self-consciously. The brunette flicked a glance up at him, her cheeks heating slightly for a second time. "I take it you're new in town?"

"Yep, just got here."

"Where'd you come from?" He pressed. She stopped fumbling with the buckle and stood up, wiping her hands on the back of her jeans.

"New Mexico most recently." She said quickly and edged around him before kneeling to attack the other buckle as well.

"New Mexico's nice." He said and immediately wished he hadn't. She was pointedly not looking at him but Mark could see enough of her face to see her eyebrow rise slightly.

"Yeah, it's nice." She responded, still refusing to look in his direction. Mark sucked in a deep breath and sighed heavily, looking up to the sky for strength.

"So what're ya doin here?"

"I was having a drink. Now, I'm going home." She said standing up and throwing her leg over her bike.

"I meant, what are you doing in Texas?" He rephrased his question trying desperately to hold back the irritation he could feel inching slowly to the surface. For a woman who Denny was sure wanted to talk to him, she sure didn't act like she wanted anything.

"Just trying to get by." She continued her answer just as clipped as all the others.

"Look, I came out here because you look like you could use an ear. Den and I agree you look like you saw a ghost or something. So I came out to see if there was anything I could do. Forget I bothered. It's pretty damned obvious you're not one for talking." Mark snapped and turned heading back toward the bar before she could respond.

Cassie sat on her bike with her mouth half opened as he walked away. She knew she was being rude but she just couldn't handle the whole 'knight in shining armor' routine today. All she wanted was a place she could get away from all her trouble and she thought she'd finally had it. Unfortunately, she was tremendously wrong. However, that didn't give her the right to take it out on perfectly nice guys trying to do the right thing and help a woman in obvious distress.

Suddenly very embarrassed, Cassie let her head drop into her hands. The last time she was in Denny's place she had all but fallen over herself for information on the big red head. What had he told her his name was? Mark? Yeah, that was him and in her infinite wisdom, Cassie had run him off.

"Nice job… Very nice." She groaned and swung her leg back over the bike to the gravel below it. Cassie took a deep breath and, perhaps a little slower than usual, made her way back to the bar.

* * *

"…Den, I'm telling ya, she don't want nothing to do with me." Cassie could hear Mark saying as she walked up behind him. Denny's eyes had flicked briefly up to her as she came in but the big man's back was to the door. He hadn't seen a thing.

"I don't know about all that big guy. I'd be willing to bet she'll be back." The bartender said to him, a slight grin playing on his weathered face.

"No, you didn't hear her out there. I might as well have been some creep off the street tryin to steal her purse." He moped, slouching down on his stool.

"You wanna make a bet of it?" Denny egged him on. Cassie couldn't help but smile as she stood behind the big man watching it all unfold.

"Hell yes. I'll buy you dinner if she walks back through that door." Mark said emphatically spinning on his stool to point at the door as he spoke.

"Hi." Cassie said gently moving his arm out of her face as he stared at her.

"Den you sneaky bastard." Mark grinned without taking his eyes off of Cassie. "You can take that dinner and shove it up your ass."

"Not to worry, it was worth it for the look on your face." Denny chuckled and turned away, walking through a double swinging door to the left.

"Well, well…" Mark said smiling in spite of himself. "Is there something I can do for you?" Cassie's face heated at his words and she found herself looking away.

"Alright…here it goes." She began more to herself than to him. "I was extremely rude out there and I apologize. I'm just not up to the playing the damsel in distress today."

"That's alright darlin; I suppose I should take a hint once in a while." He chuckled wryly and ran a hand through his long red hair.

"No, that's okay." Cassie blurted. "Under normal circumstances, I'd have been happy to talk."

"But these aren't normal circumstances." Mark finished her thought for her. Cassie took a deep breath and shook her head. "Well darlin, no harm no foul I guess. I take it I'll be seein you around then." He said and nodded curtly before turning back to his drink on the bar. Cassie's stomach knotted tight as she found herself staring at his back for the second time today.

"Yeah…" She finally managed but couldn't seem to make herself walk away. "I'll see you around. The town's not that big." Mark glanced over his shoulder and gave her a brief smile. The brunette let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and walked over to the bar to lean against it.

Cassie glanced around but Denny was nowhere in sight. She frowned slightly and plopped down on a stool three away from the big man.

Mark glanced over at her. The poor girl looked a little lost. He shook his head and cursed himself under his breath before heaving himself off of his stool and wandering back behind the bar.

"Den's doing…whatever it is Denny does. He could be gone a little while." He said grabbing a mug and filling it from the tap. Cassie glanced up at him and nodded but he could tell she wasn't really paying attention. "Did you want a beer?" He continued. Mark couldn't help but smile when he saw the confusion finally cross her face.

"Do you just help yourself when he's not around?"

"Mostly. I keep tellin' him that I'm gonna run this place someday." He chatted filling a second mug and sliding it over to her. Cassie took it gingerly and nodded a thanks.

"That's a pretty good deal if you asked me." She grinned sipping the amber brew. Mark shrugged and wandered back to the other side of the bar, taking a seat next to her.

"It's got its moments. However, sometimes he cuts out altogether and leaves me here to run the place. I can pour a beer but that's about it. I don't know jack about all those fancy girlie drinks."

"This doesn't seem like the girlie drink kind of place."

"Nah, not really, but every once in a while you get tourists wandering in here and they want all that crazy stuff." Mark chuckled as he spoke. "I remember on night, I had just come in off the road and I wandered in here for a drink. Poor Cindy was running ragged." He smiled and waved to the petite blonde that was wiping tables in the back. Cassie watched her blush and smile as big as she was able before going back to the task at hand. "The place was packed and Denny had just sort of taken off early. Cindy begged me and I stepped behind the bar and took care of the place. Since then, I just sort of help myself when I feel like it."

"I don't think I've ever stayed in one place long enough to build that kind of rapport with anyone." Cassie mused staring down into her mug.

"Wandering spirit?" Mark pressed gently. He couldn't be sure but he had a feeling that her wanderlust might just be part of her problem.

"Not exactly no. Sometimes…" She stopped searching for the right words. "Sometimes, you've just got to go." Cassie finished, her gaze still focused on the bottom of her glass. Mark swung around on his stool to see her better. He couldn't help but wonder if she knew the pain on her face was visible, almost tangible.

"What are you runnin from darlin?" He asked on a whim. Cassie's head shot up and she looked at him like he'd stabbed her straight in the chest.

"Why would you ask that? I mean, why would you think I was running from anything?" She stammered, still looking for all intents and purposes like a deer in headlights.

"Well…" Mark began softly. He'd rattled her and he hadn't meant to. He finally got her to talk to him; the last thing he wanted was her bolting now. "You're new in town. You told me you're from New Mexico but your accent is definitely not from this part of the country. You've got that city girl, Midwestern sound to you, so I know this isn't your first move and at your age, you shouldn't have to move that often. In other words, you could call it an educated guess." He grinned softly at the astonished look on her face.

"For starters, have you ever thought of police work as a vocation?" She laughed. Now it was Mark's turn to blush.

"Nah, my job keeps me pretty busy as it is. I don't think I'd have time for the academy and all that." Cassie raised an eyebrow and took a long drink, finishing off her mug. Mark glanced at her, sensing the next obvious question and stood up snagging her glass as he did so and hurried back behind the bar.

"So what is your job Mark?" She asked as he slid her glass back to her freshly filled. Mark's head dropped slightly but he didn't speak. "If I knew you at all, which I don't, I'd say you were embarrassed to tell me." The big man shook his head and waved her off as he filled his own glass and walked back around to sit down.

"I wouldn't say embarrassed exactly, no. Some people do get very put off by what I do so I don't generally tell people if they don't recognize me."

"Should I recognize you?" She asked, leaning her elbow on the bar as she turned to face him.

"It does happen." He grinned and played with the rim of his mug.

"You mean to tell me I've been sitting here talking to a famous person and I had no idea?" Now she was laughing outright.

"I don't know if I'd call it famous…" Mark said non-commitally. He wanted desperately to change the subject but couldn't figure out how to do it gracefully.

"Well now I've got to know, Mr. Famous person. What do you do for a living that you'd be recognized on the streets?" Mark glanced over at her and she could have sworn his face was just a bit redder than it should have been as he waved her off and let his head drop into his hand. "I'd say by the size of you that you're an athlete of some sort. Let me think, football? No, that's not it."

"No, not even in college." He laughed.

"Alright, not football but you are an athlete, right?" She continued, a playful and curious light sparkling in her dark eyes. The big man nodded without looking at her and took a long drink of his beer. "An athlete…" She muttered out loud as she wracked her brain to find the answer. Finally, she shrugged her shoulders. "I give up. What do you do?"

Mark sighed heavily and rubbed at his eyes then turned to her slowly.

"I am a professional wrestler." He said simply and almost cringed. Cassie stared at him, her mouth agape. Mark wilted slightly under her gaze. "Well say somethin darlin. You're staring at me like I just grew another head."

"You're a professional wrestler?"

"Yeah."

"And you're famous?"

"Yup. So they tell me." He muttered and turned back to his beer unable to stomach the depreciating comments that he knew were coming.

"That's pretty damned cool." She nodded and patted him on the arm. "Is this where I'm supposed to ask you for your autograph?"

"Oh lord." He sighed and let his head fall into his folded arms. "This is exactly why I don't tell people." He said but his massive tattooed arms muffled it.

"No, no, no. Don't be embarrassed! I meant it when I said that was pretty cool." She laughed and tried to turn his head so he was facing her. He shrugged her off and continued hiding his face. "Okay, what's your deal then?" Mark lifted his head and raised a pale eyebrow at her.

"My deal? What do you mean my deal?" He asked skeptically.

"You're…character. What's your character?" She reached for the correct wording.

"You mean my gimmick?" He asked finally sitting upright again.

"Yeah, that." Cassie laughed. Mark couldn't be sure but she seemed genuinely interested. Mark opened his mouth but hesitated.

"Have you ever heard of the Undertaker?" He asked after a long silence.

"Yeah. Wrestling fan or not, there aren't a whole lot of people who haven't heard that name before…" She rambled as the realization came over her. "Jesus… You're the Undertaker?" Mark nodded slowly.

"That'd be me."

"Wow…" Cassie giggled. Mark made a sour face at her and slid her beer toward her. "I had a friend growing up that was obsessed with you!"

"Oh really now?"

"But you looked…different then…" Cassie smiled. Mark tried to smile back but suddenly her eyes were picking him apart. It was making him just the tiniest bit uncomfortable.

"Let me guess, big black hat, long black coat. My hair was shorter then and I wasn't nearly in the shape I'm in now." He said rolling his eyes like he'd had the same conversation a thousand times.

"I see it now." She said squinting at him as she spoke. "Your eyes, I should have recognized your eyes." Mark nearly spit his beer on the counter.

"My eyes? What's wrong with my eyes?" He asked wiping his mouth on a napkin.

"There's nothing wrong with your eyes. I used to sit with her in her bedroom after school and I'd stare at these posters she had all over her walls. I never really followed wrestling but she loved it so I'd listen when she talked about it and I'd try to remember names and things. Regardless, I'd look at the posters on her walls and I remember the green eyes that looked so focused, so driven, so…evil even and I always wanted to know what made them tick." Mark was smiling openly as she talked about her past. "I was sure there was more to it than the purple gloves and the fat guy."

"Paul Bearer." Mark grinned. "He was the fat guy." Cassie laughed and clapped her hands in recognition.

"You didn't have so many tattoos then." She pointed out and traced one of the designs with her finger.

"No, I didn't." He chuckled. "But enough about me." Mark said happily turning the focus away from himself. "What's your deal?"

"I don't talk about myself." Cassie said quietly and wrapped both hands around her mug as she lapsed back to staring into it.

"That's not fair."

"Why isn't it fair? I just don't like to talk about myself."

"I already told you about myself, now it's your turn." Mark said teasingly and nudged her with his elbow. Cassie swayed slowly and braced herself on the bar.

"I think I'm done drinking tonight." She giggled but finished off her beer before pushing the glass away. "Weird, I had one drink and two beers and I'm positively giddy."

"You didn't eat today did you little girl?" He asked his voice calm but concerned. Cassie thought on it for a long moment then shook her head.

"No, I guess I didn't." She frowned. "No wonder I'm a lightweight tonight."

"Well…" Mark began. "Would you want to get a bite to eat? I haven't eaten since I left the arena."

For a long moment, Cassie just looked at him.

"What? You're giving me that look again."

"What look?" She asked, the beginnings of a grin turning up the corners of her perfect mouth.

"The look like I grew another head."

"No…not at all. I was just trying to decide if it was safe to go eat with a man I barely know in a town where no one knows me at all." She said raising a playful eyebrow.

"I assure you darlin, nothing but dinner and conversation with an old fart who would love to be seen in the company of a beautiful younger woman." Mark teased and slid off his stool, holding a hand out to her.

"From what Denny tells me, beautiful younger women aren't a problem for you." Cassie teased back as she took his hand and hopped down to stand next to him.

"What in the hell has that old man been tellin' you?" Mark sputtered and turned back to glare at the swinging doors that hadn't so much as budged since the old bartender had disappeared behind them. Cassie giggled and put her hands up to cover her mouth. The discomfiture seemed sorely out of place on the big man at her side.

"Let's just say, I know about the cot in the back room."

"Oh good Lord…" He muttered under his breath and stood looking at the floor with his hands on his hips. "It's not as bad as it sounds…"

"Even if it is, it's none of my business. What am I?" She tried to placate him. "I'm just some girl you met in a bar."

"I doubt that little girl…" He said more seriously than Cassie had expected as he raised his head and caught her full on with his green eyes. "Something tells me there's a lot more to you than bars and bikes." Cassie felt the heat rise in her cheeks under his gaze and turned to face the door, teetering slightly as she did so.

"So are we going to eat or what?" She said a little breathlessly. Her stomach was in the process of tying itself into another painful knot.

"Most definitely. Just let me find that old bastard and settle up for the beers."

"Don't worry about it…" Denny called from behind the double doors. "I'll cover you tonight Deadman." There was a faint hint of laughter in his voice. Mark rolled his eyes and glanced back at Cassie.

"Been listening the whole time…" He grumbled at her. Cassie couldn't help but laugh. "You're damn right you're covering it now." He called back toward the doors. "Ya sneaky bastard."

Neither of them could keep a straight face as the older man's laughter carried to them.

"You kids just have a good time." He grinned happily and stuck his head out to wave good bye.

"Blow it out your ass Den." Mark said sweetly through gritted teeth. Denny just waved off his friend's irritation and disappeared back into the back of the bar. "You about ready little girl?" He asked sighing heavily and turning back to Cassie. The brunette nodded as she braided her hair and swung it like a dark rope back over her shoulder.

"After you Taker." She grinned playfully and motioned toward the door. Mark rolled his eyes and walked past her.

"G'night Cindy." He called to the little blonde waitress as he pushed through the door. She smiled and walked over to hug him good-bye before picking up a tray of glasses and ducking behind the bar.


	4. Chapter 4

The sun had disappeared behind the horizon and the sky was beginning to fade into the deep blackness of night as they stepped out into the parking lot. All around them they could hear the sounds of the nocturnal creatures just beginning their nightly routine.

"Grab your helmet." Mark said absently to her as he threw his big leg over his bigger bike.

"Who said I was riding with you?" Cassie asked, a standoffish air folding over her like a cloak.

"You're still swaying on your feet darlin. You're not driving until you get some food into you." The big man said matter-of-factly. Cassie's skepticism withered at the logic behind his words.

"Point taken." She said simply, slightly embarrassed by her actions and grabbed her helmet from her handlebars. "So where are we going?" She asked tightening the strap under her chin and swinging herself onto the bike behind him.

"There's only one place in town. I was thinking we'd go there." He said as he kicked over the engine and gunned the throttle without putting the bike in gear.

"That would be the place then wouldn't it?" Cassie chuckled and settled herself more firmly behind him, wrapping her arms around his well-muscled waist. Mark's breath caught in his throat when he felt her press herself against his back but shook off the distraction.

"Hold on tight and I'll get us there in half the time." He called over the motor.

"Don't hurry on my account. I love to ride at night." She said leaning up so her mouth was next to his ear.

"…And she loves to ride." Mark chuckled. "Careful darlin, you're halfway to bein my soul mate." Cassie started to say something but Mark threw the bike in gear and tore out into the night before she could finish.

* * *

It was nearly dawn by the time Mark pulled back into the little parking lot outside the bar. Both of them were tired but laughing. They'd had a very good night.

"I can't believe it's so late!" Cassie giggled as she hopped off the big man's bike.

"Yeah, it's gonna be hell catching my flight this afternoon." He laughed back.

"You're leaving?" The brunette asked, a slight frown darkening her features.

"Yeah, I've got a show in Washington tomorrow. Then it's off to Portland, then to San Diego."

"Well that's no fun…" She continued frowning and crossed her arms in front of her.

"I'll be back by the end of the week. In San Diego I'm supposed to get 'injured'." He laughed and made little quotes in the air with his fingers. "Then I'm off for a month until the next Pay-Per-View."

"Off for a month? What for?" She asked.

"I'm supposed to take some time and rehab my elbow. It's been bothering me a bit more than usual so they gave me some time to take care of it. Besides, it gives me a chance to make a big entrance in Detroit." He smiled as he thought of it.

"You're going to Detroit?"

"Yup. Big show next month."

"I haven't been home in years." She all but whispered as her eyes lowered to the gravel at her feet.

"So that's the accent I'm hearing." He chuckled and reached a hand out to stroke her cheek. Cassie smiled in spite of herself as she nodded. "Maybe you could make the trip out there with me?"

"Oh no…" She said immediately. "I don't want to go back there. Not ever if I can help it."

Mark's eyebrows shot up at the feeling behind her words. He wanted to ask what happened to make her run away from home, but wasn't sure it was his place to pry.

"Alright, then how about you keep your schedule open next Wednesday so I can take you out to dinner when I get back?" He asked changing the subject. Cassie smirked and nodded again, her dark eyes flitting up to his as he spoke.

"I think I might enjoy that. Then I can tell all my friends that I had dinner with the Undertaker twice." She laughed. Mark rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"One more notch on the belt eh little girl?" He muttered and took a chance, wrapping his massive arm around her waist and pulling her to him. Cassie squeaked when he moved her but didn't protest.

"Yeah, if I had a belt." She grumbled but the smile didn't fade. "I don't make it a point of dating famous people if that's what you mean."

"Are we dating?" Mark jumped on her words as soon as they came out of her mouth. Cassie opened her mouth to speak but nothing happened. She just stared at him smiling, judging the look in his eyes.

"Well you did pay for dinner…" She teased. "That could constitute a date." Mark bent his head and laughed outright.

"After half an hour of arguing with you I finally managed to sneak away and pay. I don't know if that counts darlin."

"But you did buy…" She continued.

"Yeah, I suppose I did." He grinned at the flicker in her eyes.

"So when you get back, dinner's on me." She grinned playfully and slid out of his grasp, walking toward her own bike.

"That doesn't sound much like dating to me." Mark called to her as she started up her bike.

"Well whatever it is, we'll figure it out when you get back." She yelled over the two idling motorcycles. Mark laughed incredulously and shook his head but watched as she threw the bike into gear and tore out into the lightening night.

Mark jammed his own bike into gear and started toward the other direction when a set of headlights flicked on in his peripheral vision. Instinctively, the big man turned his attention toward them. There was an old pick up truck pulling out from between two big rocks on the right side of the road. He sat there in the driveway watching it turn onto the highway and head in the same direction as Cassie.

He tried to shake it off, but a dark foreboding had twisted its way into his gut. Somehow he knew that truck was after her.

"Hell no…" He muttered to himself and shot off in the same direction; following back a ways to keep himself inconspicuous. Down the road he could see Cassie's lone headlight taking a turn. The truck was following, maybe three car lengths behind. As he watched, the truck sped up. The knot in Mark's stomach tightened. He'd never get to her before the truck hit her but he had to try.

The big man gunned the throttle and closed the distance between himself and the other two. The truck was crawling directly up Cassie's tailpipe. Mark could see her agitation as she rode. She was swerving closer and closer to the shoulder, obviously hoping the truck would pass but it mimicked her every move.

The knot in his stomach turned to anger as he watched. He sped up a bit more until he could have drafted the truck. Inside, he could see a dark shape look back at him in the rear view mirror.

Out of nowhere, the truck's tired screeched and it veered directly toward Cassie. Mark watched helplessly as her bike spilled over into the dirt and gravel on the shoulder.

"Son of a bitch!" Mark screamed as the truck skidded back onto the road and slammed on its brakes. Mark turned hard to the right to avoid its bumper and dumped his bike as gracefully as possible not five yards from where Cassie had laid hers down.

Before Mark could recover himself, the truck took off down the highway and around a turn. He stood in the middle of the street waiting for it to come back with adrenaline pounding through his veins. All he could hear was the din of blood rushing through his body.

For a brief second, he thought to pick up his bike and follow it but Cassie's bike was still lying on the shoulder. From what Mark could see, she hadn't moved.

The sight of her inert form leeched any anger he had from him. He made his way over to her slowly, his legs like lead as he walked.

Mark breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her begin struggling to get her leg out from under the fallen bike.

"Cassie, are you alright?" He asked and helped her lift the bike back to its kickstand.

"Yeah…I think…" She muttered and tried to put weight on her right leg. It buckled underneath her. If Mark hadn't been standing next to her she would have fallen. "Maybe not." She grunted and bit her lip through the pain.

"Here…" Mark said and lifted her off her feet, walking to a nearby boulder to set her down. "What the hell was that about?"

"I wish I knew." Cassie responded. Her voice was shaking slightly. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"I had a bad feeling." Cassie cocked her head in confusion. "I was pulling out of the parking lot at Denny's place and I saw that asshole pull out from behind a couple of rocks. It was like he was waiting there. I didn't like it so I followed. I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner."

"Go pick up your bike." Cassie said completely ignoring his apology. Now it was Mark's turn to look confused. "The sun's coming up, people are going to start heading down this road to get to work. Go get your bike out of the middle of the lane." There was something distant and harsh in her voice that the big man didn't like. He stood there for a moment watching her roll her pant leg up waiting for her to speak again. She grimaced as the cloth slid over her knee but didn't look up at him. Shaking his head, he did as she'd said.

When he returned walking his bike, she looked slightly happier.

"Everything alright?" He asked cautiously. She nodded.

"Yeah, apparently having one of these stuck in your leg, prevents you from walking on it." She grinned holding up a rock nearly the size of her fist. Mark let out a low whistle and took it from her. There was blood all over it and blood on her hands as well.

"Let me take a look at that." He said dropping the rock and getting to his knees next to her. Cassie stiffened and opened her mouth to protest but finally relented. "This is gonna need stitches little girl. I'll get you to a hospital." He said matter-of-factly. The tone of his voice left no room for argument.

"It's not that bad." Cassie moped as he took an old bandana out of his back pocket and wrapped it around the large triangular tear on the outside of her knee.

"Yes it is. I know entirely too much about injuries so I won't take no for an answer. You're going to get that stitched."

Cassie grunted as Mark knotted the cloth and pulled it tight. She shot him a nasty look and pulled the denim back down her leg.

"Now the test…" She grinned playfully but Mark could see the pain of it riding just behind the easygoing front she was showing him. Before he could help her, Cassie hopped off the rock and tested her weight on it. She limped a bit in a circle and held her arms out teasingly. "Ta da!" She laughed then staggered slightly. Before she had a chance to fall, Mark was under her arm, holding her up and tightly against him.

"C'mon, we'll get someone out here to get your bike." Cassie nodded and let him help her to his bike.

Once she was seated, Mark pulled a cell phone out of his jacket and punched a bunch of numbers.

"Yeah Ray? It's Mark. I got some work I need done as quick as you can." He said when someone at the other end picked up. Cassie couldn't help but notice how his soft drawl got thicker when he spoke to certain people. When he was talking to her, it seemed almost to fade out completely. "Great, can you come get it? I haven't looked too close but it looks pretty bad…Exactly, about two miles south of Denny's place…Alright, thanks Ray. Just call me with a quote and I'll take care of it…yeah, thanks. Bye."

"What was that?" Cassie asked as he jammed the phone back into his jacket.

"I got someone comin to get your bike." He said as he zipped up his leather and slid onto the bike in front of her.

"I caught that part, what about the estimate? You don't have to take care of it Mark, I'm not broke." The tone of her voice was almost hurt.

"Maybe I want to take care of it for you."

"But I don't want you to." Cassie said after a moment.

"Too bad. It's already done." He smiled and started up the bike. The roar of the engine drown out any other protests she could have made. "Hold on tight." She heard as he grabbed her hands and pulled them around his waist. Cassie grumbled and head butted him between the shoulder blades.

"Just…get me fixed." She laughed. The big man nodded and dropped the bike into gear, making a U-turn and heading back toward Denny's place.


	5. Chapter 5

The sun was peaking just over the horizon by the time the two of them made their way to the hospital a little ways outside Houston. It was unremarkable by hospital standards. The building was large and gray and square and dotted all over with little windows. Cassie swallowed a big lump in her throat as Mark guided the bike into a parking space outside the emergency entrance. She hated hospitals. Deep down she was fighting the urge to run; to tell Mark to turn the bike around, that she'd be fine. But…he'd gone out of his way to help her. Hell, he barely knew her and he'd put himself in danger to save her.

Taking a deep breath, Cassie realized Mark was off the bike and holding a hand out to her. The brunette did her best to swallow down the fear and apprehension that threatened to turn her muscles to jelly and slid gingerly off the bike.

"Careful little girl." Mark said grabbing her around the waist when she teetered.

"I…I'm alright." She began shifting her weight to her good leg and slowly stretching the injured one. "I think I was sitting too long. It got stiff."

"C'mon darlin, let's get you looked at." The big man said softly as Cassie took it upon herself to use him as a crutch. She nodded tiredly and let him lead her up a small ramp and through a set of big glass double doors.

The artificial cold hit them like a gale when the doors slid open and gently blew the stray strands of hair around Cassie's face like they had a mind of their own. She shivered a bit in Mark's arm but directed him toward a chair.

"You stay here; I'll go get you signed in." He said softly. Cassie couldn't be sure but he sounded so concerned. Why would he do this for someone he'd only just met?

A moment later, Mark returned with a clipboard and pen.

"I filled out what I could." He started offering them both to her. "But that wasn't much. You'll have to do the rest of it on your own."

Cassie smiled when she looked at the paper. The whole sheet was blank but the space offered for her first name. Quickly, she glanced over at Mark and scratched out what he'd written.

"My first name is actually Cassandra." She grinned. Mark nodded silently and turned away as the heat rose into his cheeks. The brunette shook her head softly and set to filling out the paperwork. When she was finished she hoisted herself out of the chair and staggered, her damaged leg protesting under her. Again, Mark was out of his chair and had insinuated himself under her arm before she could hit the floor.

"Thanks." Cassie muttered and let herself be set back down in the plastic waiting room chair.

"I better take that up for you." Mark smiled as he looked casually at the forms in his hand. "Light? Your last name is Light?"

"Yes…" Cassie began with a hint of sarcasm. "My last name is Light." She nodded, one eyebrow raised.

"That's sort of unusual is all." He stammered, wilting under the scrutiny of her near patronizing gaze.

"It's not unusual, it's my last name. What's your last name then?" She teased sliding down slightly in the chair.

"Calaway."

"Maybe where I'm from that's an unusual name." Mark made a sour face at her and waved the clipboard toward the nurse's station.

"I'm gonna get you signed in." He grumbled and stalked off for the desk. Cassie watched him get in line behind and elderly woman and a small child wailing in his mother's arms. The nurse looked positively frazzled but she took them each one at a time.

By the time Mark made it back to her, his cell phone had rung three times and the staff had informed him in no uncertain terms that while in the hospital, it was to remain turned off.

After his third warning, he excused himself out of the building to return the calls.

Cassie slid far enough down the chair that she could rest her injured leg on the chair across from her. Already she was bored, antsy, irritated just to be there but she stayed put. She couldn't bring herself to run. Mark had gone above and beyond the call of duty and part of her felt guilty for feeling so ungrateful but she hated hospitals. With every fiber of her being, she hated them. She'd watched her mother die in one and more times than she cared to think about, she'd awakened in one of those horrible little beds all alone with tubes and wires running from her to beeping clicking machines. Nothing had ever scared her like that. Ever.

The worst was the time she didn't even remember how she got there. All she knew was when she opened her eyes to the stark whiteness around her she had lost it. She'd tried to mover her arms and found them strapped down to the stainless steel rails surrounding her. She'd panicked then, fighting and thrashing with everything she had. The nurse had summoned orderlies to hold her down.

Cassie had been so scared when they held her shoulders to the mattress. She'd been screaming but she didn't know what she said. Only later did she find out she was threatening to shove vital parts of their anatomy into other, significantly less comfortable parts.

Part of her could look back and laugh at that part, but only that part. Two weeks later when they'd released her, Cassie found out what had happened. All she had to do was look in the mirror to see it. He'd done it again. He almost broken her jaw and before he took her to the Emergency Room he pumped her full of whatever it was he was taking that week.

She had been admitted as an overdose. Cassandra Light, junkie. Unconsciously, she rolled her eyes at the thought. Never in all her years had she used drugs. But there she was, locked in a psychiatric unit in a section reserved for substance abusers.

It'd taken her every minute of her two week stay to convince them she didn't need to be there. Finally, they had relented and released her into the care of the last person she wanted to see…

"Ms. Light?" A voice broke her out of her revelry. Wearily, she turned to face the person calling her name. Dimly she knew she should recognize him but she couldn't place him. He was a handsome man, blonde hair, blue eyes, with a toned physique, and a kindly smile as he bent slightly as if to check her face; to make sure he was talking to the right woman.

"Officer…" She started, reaching for a name she soon realized she'd never been told.

"Underwood." He smiled wider for a moment then his features contorted into a look of concern. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah…just a little bike accident." She chuckled wryly and hoisted her leg off the far chair, offering him a place to sit down.

"I'm glad I ran into you." He began taking the proffered seat. "We've had some inquiries about you in the last twenty-four hours. It struck me as odd." Cassie went numb as he spoke. She could feel the color draining from her face as she listened to him.

"What sort of inquiries?" She asked timidly suddenly unable to meet his eyes. Officer Underwood shifted uncomfortably in his seat before he continued.

"I received a call from Caroline, she owns the diner in town." He began. Cassie nodded and leaned forward desperate to hear what information he had but afraid all the same. It was as if she knew exactly what he was going to say. "It seems there was a man in there last night shortly before nine asking if anyone had seen a woman matching your description and answering to the name of Casey."

"Really." She said quietly. The officer nodded gravely.

"Caroline said he gave her the creeps. He was jumpy and disheveled like he'd been driving a long time. She said his eyes were glassy. When she said she didn't know anyone matching that description he pulled out a picture and showed it to her. Now Caroline told him she didn't know the woman and walked back toward her back room. She was going to call me right then but he left and since she gets a crazy or two from time to time she didn't think much of it until you walked in later. That's when she called me."

"Did…did she happen to see what he was driving?" Cassie asked quietly, she could hear the tremor in her voice as she spoke. She just hoped the good officer had missed it.

"She didn't mention it, why?"

"Because I was run off the road this morning by a pick up truck."

"Cassie? You alright little girl?" Mark's deep drawl sounded behind her.

Both of them glanced up.

"Yeah, I'm…I'm fine." She breathed but the big man wasn't fooled. Her color had gone again and her eyes reminded him of a doe he'd shot once.

"Mark, how are you?" Officer Underwood asked standing and offering the big man his hand. Mark glanced from the good officer back to Cassie before taking it.

"Just fine David, just fine. How are the kids?" Mark asked congenially as they each took a seat.

"Oh they're getting big." Officer Underwood smiled. "Davey Junior is just dying to see you again." Mark chuckled.

"You tell him I'll be over some time next week. And I'll bring him more autographs."

"I'll be sure to."

"I should have known you two would know each other." Cassie chuckled; the perfectly normal conversation between the two men had assuaged her fears somewhat. Both men turned to her as if she'd grown another head. "This place is so small it would only stand to reason." She explained.

"And how do you know the good officer?" Mark asked her.

"She came into the station yesterday afternoon." David offered helpfully. Cassie shot him a look that would have curdled milk. "She was… ah… getting a feel for town." The big man nodded reasonably. "How'd you meet her Mark?"

"I met him at Denny's Place."

"Ah, that would make sense. When the big man here is in town that's where he spends most of his time." The officer chuckled. "That big old house he's got over there must be six ways from neglected."

"Come on now David, it's not that bad. I've got a cleaning lady."

"Big house, cleaning lady, famous guy…" Cassie trailed off. "I do know where to find'em don't I?" Officer Underwood nodded and slapped his leg. Mark however, seemed to go a bit red.

"Cassie darlin, they're ready for ya whenever you can make it back." The big man offered and stood up holding out a hand for her.

The good officer stood hastily. "I'll let you two get her checked out. Cassie, if you'd come by the station I might be able to give you a hand getting settled in." There was a look in David Underwood's eyes that said he wanted more than to show her the town. "Since big guy here won't be around much." He added grinning. Mark shot him a frown then smiled and shook his hand again.

"Thanks." Cassie muttered. "I'll be in when my bike gets put back together."

"Alright folks, I'll see you around I'm sure." Officer Underwood finished waving as he wandered out the door.

"You ready darlin?" Mark asked. Cassie's eyes had followed the other man out the door. The brunette shook her head slightly and glanced up, reaching with one hand.

"Gimme a hand here, big man." She grinned. It was infectious. Mark found himself chuckling as he hoisted her off the chair and walked her back to triage.

Sixteen stitches later, Mark was her human crutch again as they made their way back to the parking lot.

"So what did the good officer want with you darlin?" Mark asked somewhat tentatively as he lifted her onto the back of his bike.

"Nothing." She blurted. Mark raised his eyebrow. "You people are just too friendly."

"Sure little girl." He shrugged and started the bike. "Where am I takin you?"

"Do you remember a big piece of land about six or so miles down from Denny's?" She asked over the idling bike.

"Sure. It was for sale for close to two years. No one wanted it. The old bastard that was selling it wanted way too much for five or so acres butting up against the highway…" Then he stopped himself. "You bought it didn't you?"

"Damn right, Skippy." She laughed.

"Alright then." He chuckled and pulled the bike out onto the road.


	6. Chapter 6

It was edging close to noon by the time they made their way back toward her property. Cassie's leg was throbbing horrifically and all she wanted was to go to bed. However, she didn't think sleep would be fast in coming. All she could think about was the truck bearing down on her and then what Officer Underwood had said. Someone was looking for her. Damn it. For once, she thought she'd managed to get away. She'd been there long enough to close on her little piece of land and hadn't heard so much as a peep.

The brunette sighed heavily and laid her head against Mark's back. It was all too much to think about.

"Hey, where are you going?" Cassie called up to him over the sound of the wind. "You passed my driveway."

"And we ain't goin there either." He yelled back. "Look." Mark gestured backward with his head. Confused, Cassie turned slightly in the saddle.

"Holy shit." She muttered. Her stomach dropped and the pain in her leg went suddenly numb. The pick up was parked behind some stunted trees just north of her driveway.

"I think this guy's been following you darlin." Mark's voice was tinged with apprehension. "He knows where you live."

"What am I going to do?" She was breathing harder against Mark's back. "All my stuff is there! I can't get to any of my stuff!"

Mark reached back and laid one hand gently on her thigh, comforting her as he took a turn to the left.

"I'll tell you exactly what you're gonna do." He began. "I'm takin you back to my place."

"WHAT?" She blurted. "There's no way!" Mark shook his helmeted head in front of her.

"Trust me darlin. There's no place safer for you." He reached back to her leg again but Cassie slapped his hand away.

"I know what you're trying to do! Let me off this bike!" She was screaming and pounding on his back.

"I'm not trying anything!" He argued. "Do you have a better idea?" Cassie opened her mouth to protest that yes, she did have something better in mind but the realization that she didn't stopped her like a brick to the face. She didn't have anywhere else to go. For as much time as she'd been in Texas she'd more or less kept to herself. The only people she could claim as acquaintances, not even friends, were Mark and Denny the bartender.

"Damn it!" She barked and fell back against Mark's back. "Damn it! Damn it! You win."

"Good. We're here."

Mark slowed and turned toward a large wrought iron gate. Cassie leaned over his shoulder in astonishment as he pulled what appeared to be a credit card out of his vest and jammed it into a slot just to the left of the gate. On the panel, a little light went from red to green and the gate began to slide open.

"Isn't that a bit much?"

"I'd think you'd be happy to see it with that psycho following you." He glanced over his shoulder at her and reaching into his vest again, produced his cell phone. "Call the good Sheriff and tell him about that truck, would you?" Cassie did as she was told and by the time she hung up they'd made their way up his long driveway. The brunette's eyes were as big as saucers as she looked around her.

Mark's property was everything she'd always wanted. The house stood up on a slight hill and appeared to ramble on in both directions forever without so much as giving the impression of disturbing the land around it. Wildflowers grew in clumps near big trees that had look like they had been there before the house or anything.

"Mark…This is beautiful." She managed as he helped her off the bike and steadied her on her feet.

"I thank ya. I can't exactly take credit for it though. My ex-wife did most of the decorating. I've been meaning to change it for…" He shrugged and turned his head slightly away from her.

"I take it the break up wasn't your idea." The big man shook his head.

"Come on, I'll get you set up in one of the guest rooms." He said. His voice was tight. Cassie wanted to do something to take that edge out of it but what could she do? Her first instinct was to tell him how stupid she must have been for leaving but what if she wasn't? From what she could tell, Mark liked to drink, ride his bike, and he was never home. What woman in their right mind would put up with that for any length of time?

As they entered the foyer, Cassie's thoughts were stopped again. The inside was almost as beautiful as the outside. The walls and ceiling were a deep honey wood and the floors were just a bit darker. Here and there big Native American rugs laid taking away from the rustic cabin feel. The furniture was sort of sparse but it seemed to fit the place. She could see into the living room and the dark brown suede of the couch looked entirely too inviting. The whole place felt expensive and well kept but comfortable.

"I'll give you the grand tour." Mark smiled back at her as he led the way down a short hallway. "Here's the living room." He waved his arms dismissively. "Over there is the kitchen and the garage is on the other side of that." He turned and started down another hallway to the left. "Down there is my room, my office, and the two guest rooms. If you go out the glass doors in the living room you'll find the deck and the barn is down a ways out back."

"Barn?" Cassie gasped.

"I've gotta have somewhere to keep the horses don't I?" Mark said grinning like a six year old on Christmas morning then ushered her back through the living room and out the door wall.

"How's your leg feelin darlin?" He asked as Cassie limped her way down the five steps that led off the deck and into the back yard. Yard however, was a stretch.

"How far does your property go?" Cassie asked accepting his arm as they walked toward a barn.

"Well, there's about ten acres back there. I don't see much of it anymore. Not with my schedule the way it is, but it's there. If you take the four-wheeler in the garage back eventually you'll hit a fence."

"Wow." Mark glanced down at her with one pale eyebrow raised.

"Wow what?" Cassie didn't know why exactly but she felt herself blushing.

"It's…it's just that this is just about the perfect place for me I think. If I had the time to set up for good I'd build something just like this for myself."

"Yeah, it's pretty nice out here. There's no one around for miles." His voice took on a contented sound as he slid open the big barn door.

"Hola Mark!" A small Hispanic man called from the hayloft. The big man at her side waved back congenially.

"Manny. Que tal?"

"The horses are all taken care of. I just fed them and brushed them down." Manny informed them in a thick Spanish accent as he hopped down off of a ladder and walked over to them, shaking Mark's hand and smiling. "Who's your friend?" His contagious white grin was focused on Cassie as he took her hand and bowed to it theatrically before planting a playful kiss on her knuckles.

"Manuel Alvieda this is Cassandra Light." Mark said and put his arm over her shoulders.

"It is an honor to meet a beautiful woman in my barn…er…his barn." He chuckled and jerked a thumb toward Mark.

"Hell Manny, why don't you cut the crap?" Mark was laughing too.

"Now, now…I thought he was doing just fine." Cassie chided as she glanced up at the big man. "Don't stop him while he's ahead." Mark sighed and rolled his eyes, shaking his head as he walked toward one of the stalls to his right. "Pleased to meet you." She said to Manny. The darker skinned man inclined his head good naturedly to the side and wandered over to Mark.

"How's Thanatos doing? He seems kinda sullen." Mark was frowning.

"Thanatos?" Cassie asked hobbling over to join them.

"Yeah, that's this big guy's name." Mark smiled and gave the big black stallion a rub on the nose. "And that pretty gray over there is Cronos."

"The Master of death and the Master of time. Very nice." Cassie nodded appreciatively and gimped over to greet the other horse.

"I'm impressed." Mark chuckled without taking his attention away from the horse in front of him.

"Anyway, I'm off." Manny began walking over to pat Cronos on the nose one last time. "Don't worry about Thanatos; he's just mad because I won't let him chew the stall door anymore." The smaller man smiled and wandered over to shake Mark's hand. "Have a good trip alright? I'll see you when you get back next week."

"Sure thing Manny. I'll make sure you get paid on Friday. Don't worry about a thing." He said.

"I never do." Manny said as he headed for the door. "It was nice to meet you Miss Cassandra." Cassie looked up from the animal in front of her and smiled waving. "Don't let big and scary get to you. Once you get to know him, he's a big pushover." Before Cassie could respond, he was gone.

"He's a great guy." Mark started as he came up beside her. "Got a real way with horses."

"He seems very nice." Cassie was still intent on Cronos. "As a matter of fact, everyone you know seems nice."

"You've met two people who have made my acquaintance. That's not much to base a hypothesis on." Mark chuckled.

"Three." Cassie corrected him. "There was the good Officer Underwood." The big man nodded sagely and smiled.

"I forgot about him. Some friend I am." Mark's southern accent was really thick suddenly. He shook his head and shrugged. Cassie turned to walk toward him but stumbled when she put weight on her banged up leg. "Whoa darlin', let me help you."

"No, its okay, I've got it…" The brunette protested even as Mark insinuated himself under her arm.

"Oh stop it kid." He muttered and to add insult to injury he hoisted her up into his arms. "Let's get you somewhere you can take your weight off that leg."

Cassie was too dumbfounded to speak. He'd picked her up like she weighed nothing. Part of her couldn't help being embarrassed. She'd never been petite by any means but she'd taken good care of herself. She worked out whenever she got around to it but they say muscle weighs more than fat…

"Look, this is really unnecessary. I can walk on my own." She finally sputtered.

"Yeah, I could see that with the way you almost fell back in there."

"I…tripped on…something." She muttered. Mark burst out laughing.

"Just to be safe kiddo, just to be safe."

"Stop calling me kid." It was a lame come back but there was no way this guy was getting the last word.

"Well, you are a kid compared to me." So much for the last word.

Cassie managed to keep her mouth shut for the remainder of her ride back to the living room. Once inside the glass doors, Mark set her gently down on her feet. Cassie limped forward a couple of steps and pronounced herself well enough to go back and play with the horses. The big man shook his head and nudged her back toward the bedrooms.

"So uh…" She muttered. "Which one's yours again?"

"The last door on the left side is my room. The last door on the right is my office. This door here…" He pushed it open for her. "…will be your room for as long as you need it."

Cassie looked up at him skeptically but hobbled inside. This was a guest room? It had a sitting room for the love of Pete! The brunette turned slowly in a circle, her mouth hanging open.

"This is bigger than the entire apartment I grew up in." Mark shrugged.

"So I take it, it'll do?" Cassie nodded then shook her head.

"Look Mark, you don't have to go through all this trouble, really." She was getting way too caught up in this. Mark seemed to be a truly nice guy and all but she had just met him. She didn't know if he was an axe wielding homicidal maniac or Martha Stewart in drag. For all she knew he could have been a Scientologist! She couldn't help but shudder. "I think once Officer Underwood calls back and gives me the all clear to go back home, I'm going to go." She nearly regretted it once she spoke. Mark maintained a good poker face but his eyes seemed to darken slightly.

"Of course. I just figured that since that asshole was camping out outside your place that you'd want a more secure place to be. I'm sure the good officer will take care of him for you…Then you can go back home." Cassie nodded.

"Yeah. Of course I can go back home." Why were her cheeks heating? "But thank you so much for everything today…and last night." She added belatedly.

"Hey no problem." At least he was smiling again. "Don't forget when I get back into town you owe me another date." Suddenly, that smile became a leer and the playful sparkle was back in his eyes.

"Dinner?" She squeaked teasingly. "With you? Again?"

"That was the plan wasn't it, little girl?" His voice had gone soft as he gingerly ran a hand down her cheek. Cassie couldn't help but smile.

"Yeah, I think it was." Then her smile wilted slightly. "That's right, you're leaving aren't you?"

"I've gotta. Duty calls." The big man glanced down at his wrist. "Holy…" He sputtered. "As a matter of fact, I've got to leave. I should have left half an hour ago. I'm gonna miss my flight."

Without a thought in her head, Cassie leaned up and kissed him quickly on the cheek. When she pulled back and leaned against the door frame she had to laugh. Mark stood in front of her, his mouth agape and his face just a bit redder than necessary.

"Well uh…have a safe flight." She muttered even as she questioned her motives for the kiss. It must be gratitude. What more did she have to offer him short of buying him a beer when he got home?

"Yeah…" He began then seemed to shake himself back into the moment. "I'll give you a call when I get to Seattle and check on you. You'll still be here tonight right?" Cassie nodded and gave him a playful shove on the arm.

"At least tell me you're packed already." She teased. Seeing a man that big stumble all over himself was starting to make her nervous.

"Hell darlin', I never unpack." He chuckled and reached into his jacket. "Here's my card. If you need anything or have any questions, call my cell number there. All right?" Cassie nodded again. "Good. Now, make yourself at home and change your dressing like the good doctor told you to. I've got to get my old ass to the airport."

Cassie watched as he turned and sauntered down the long hallway toward the rooms he'd indicated as his own. It was all she could do not to sigh audibly. Mark was wearing a lovely pair of faded blue jeans and fit very nicely across his hips. For a moment, she wished for a rewind button just so she could see him walk down the hallway again.

"Hey Mark?" She finally blurted. Her heart started to pound a little too hard inside her chest as he turned and laid those big green eyes on her. Wrangling her libido, she spoke. "Thank you for everything. I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't decided to follow this morning." There. It was said, and it was as honest as a girl could get.

"Don't worry baby girl." His voice seemed to flow over her from the other end of the hallway and she loved the way his accent twisted the word 'baby'. "I was happy to do it. I only wish I could've gotten there before that bastard made you wreck your bike." Before Cassie could get out another word, he'd turned into his room and disappeared from sight.

The brunette sagged against the door frame for a moment before turning and limping further into her room. It was beautiful! The floor was a dark amber wood lacquered to a mirror shine just like the rest of the house. Against the far wall was an entertainment stand that almost matched full of more electronic equipment than she knew existed. To the side was a rack of DVDs taller than she was.

Further to the right was a doorway. Cassie took a deep breath and hobbled over to it. She had to shake her head to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Dominating the far wall was a bed that had to be larger than a king. The head and foot boards were rough logs and the sheets and comforters were dark red and black to match the Native American rug at its foot. The dresser across from it seemed to match so she could only assume it was a set.

"Everything okay in here?" Mark's voice made her jump as she ran her hand along the top of the dresser.

"Oh uh…yeah. This is great. I can't believe you call this a guest room." She chuckled hiding her discomfiture as best she could.

"Well, I don't use it much. The only time it ever gets used is on the off chance my brother comes to town." He shook his head smiling. "I'm off. Don't forget to call if you need anything."

Cassie nodded at a loss for what to say. He'd been so great. "Alright kid. Go knock somebody's head off." Mark raised an eyebrow.

"Kid?" He muttered. "Again with the 'kid'." The playful twinkle was working its way into his eyes as he spoke. "Come here."

Cassie's stomach jumped but her feet seemed to close the gap between them without her knowledge. The next thing she knew she was standing in front of the big man, looking up into his green, green eyes. The brunette opened her mouth to speak but he cut her off, wrapping his huge arms around her waist and lifting her off the ground so they were eye to eye. She went to speak again but he silenced her a second time, pressing his lips firmly to hers. It seemed like the world dropped out of existence for the few seconds the kiss lasted. Cassie found herself reveling in the softness of his lips and the roughness of his goatee.

Then, just as soon as it began, she was standing on her own two feet again, swaying minutely, and looking up at him.

"Mark…" She breathed and placed her hand on his chest to steady herself. The big man lifted her hand to his lips and laid another quick kiss on it.

"I'll see you when I get home, right?" He whispered without lifting his lips from her knuckles. Cassie nodded and tried to force down the goofy grin that seemed to have manifested on her face. It wasn't working. "Good. I can't wait." And with that, he was gone.

Shaking herself out of her revelry, Cassie hurried down the hall in time to watch him swing his big leg over his bike, rev the engine, and tear off down the driveway.

Abruptly alone in a strange house, Cassie felt the beginnings of panic festering in her gut. It went well with the throbbing agony that was the side of her knee. She could leave, she thought. No harm in that. Surely the truck had had a visit from Officer Underwood or one of his guys. It wouldn't still be there. Would it?

She sighed heavily and lumbered over to the big suede couch. Yep, it was as comfy as it looked. Settling in to it, she started formulating a plan. She could go back to her place, take a look, see if everything was a-ok, and if it was, she could stay. Or, if that wasn't maybe she could snatch some of her stuff and come back. Who was to say the freak wouldn't come back? Could they arrest him for sitting on the side of the road? No. But they could arrest him for sitting on private property and that's exactly what he was doing!

The plan fresh in her mind, Cassie hoisted herself reluctantly off the couch.

"Now…" She muttered to herself. "Where'd he hide my prescriptions?" Cassie made a mental backtrack and followed it. Yep, they were still sitting on the table by the door. She popped the top and swallowed one dry before opening the door and hopping down the steps on her good leg.

"Shit." She yelled and was surprised when it echoed back. "How the hell am I supposed to get there?" Mark had taken his bike and hers was more than likely in some guy named Ray's shop. "Not that it was running anyway…" She grumbled and made her way back toward the house…slowly. The ache in her leg had gotten infinitely worse since she left the hospital. All of a sudden, a thought hit her and she angled toward the garage.

The door on the side wasn't locked but that didn't much surprise her. They were pretty well in the middle of nowhere. The only indications that there was even a house there was the huge gate and the mailbox sitting out next to the road.

"Son of a…" She muttered walking in and flipping on the lights. "I'd lock it anyway." The garage was almost half the length of the house and packed full with shiny toys, both four wheeled and two wheeled.

Cassie made her way down a row of motorcycles of all makes and models. She ran her hands along their silky paint jobs and couldn't stop herself from laughing. There were Fat boys and Dynaglides and Sportsters sitting next to Triumphs and customs. Some, Cassie would have given her entire life savings for they were so rare.

"I think I may have just died and gone to heaven." She giggled and ran her hand over a beautiful flamed tank. The emblem said Titan. She'd never heard of it.

Finally, she found what she was looking for. Past the rows of motorcycles were the four-wheeled toys.

"This will do nicely." She grinned and slowly hoisted herself up into a big black Dodge Ram. "Now…keys…" Where would he hide the keys to this many vehicles? Cassie thought to herself as she rummaged through the glove box. They weren't there. Frowning, she sat up and folded down the visor; still no keys.

With a heavy sigh, Cassie let her head fall against the steering wheel.

"It's not like he gave me the code for the gate anyway." She muttered chuckling softly and threw open the door, lowering herself gingerly back to the floor. With one last look around, she hobbled toward the door leading to the kitchen.

"Maybe after a nap." She said yawning as she made her way past the counters and through the living room. The painkillers were making her sleepy suddenly. "Then I'll call Mark and see if he'll give me the code."

Cassie limped into her room and stifling a yawn, fell onto the massive bed. Before long, she was asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

Mark sighed heavily as he tossed down his bag, closing the hotel room door behind him. What in interesting day it had been. The big man felt himself grinning at the thought of the brunette hiding out in his house.

"Cassie, Cassie…" He mumbled and sat down on the bed. "Don't make a fool out of me little girl." Since he'd gotten on the plane in Houston the tiniest bit of nagging had gotten to him. What did he really know about this woman? Not much that was for sure and with the way she avoided questions, it seemed like she preferred it that way.

Mark fell backward and lay there for a long moment staring at the ceiling. It was going to be a long night. It was already edging close to five in the evening and before he could come back and pass out for the night, he had an autograph signing. At least he didn't have to go far for that, it was in the hotel. He'd had to duck through a back entrance to avoid the line of fans.

Rolling over onto his stomach, Mark reached for the phone and began pressing buttons. When the answering machine picked up he grimaced.

"Cassie? You there? Pick up its Mark." There was a long silence. "Cassie? Darlin, pick up."

"Hello?" Her voice was raspy when she finally answered.

"Hey darlin." Suddenly, the big man couldn't keep from smiling. "Did I wake ya?"

"Yeah…" She yawned. "But that's alright. It was getting sort of weird here."

"Weird? What do you mean weird?"

"It's nothing. I'm just not used to being here yet…" She muttered.

"Yet huh?" He chuckled. "I take it you're planning on stayin a while then."

"Well, seeing as how I don't have any transportation…" She laughed and let her words trail off.

"There's a garage full of transportation if you really need to get out that bad. Until the good sheriff calls ya and gives ya the all clear, I'd stay put though." Jesus, did he just give her permission to use his vehicles? Mark could have slapped himself.

"It's alright big guy, my leg's not up to shifting right now anyway." Mark nodded into the phone.

"I suppose not."

"So you're at the hotel then?" She asked and Mark found himself smiling bigger. He'd been afraid the conversation would be one-sided.

"Yeah, gotta get to a signing here shortly. I just wanted to make sure you were alright."

"I'm alright. Got a trusty bottle of pain killers and a huge house to snoop through." She laughed. "It'll keep me busy until you get back."

"Go on ahead darlin, I got nothing to hide." He wanted to bite his tongue as soon as he said it. He didn't know anything about this woman. What the hell was he thinking giving her free reign like that? Just as he was about to speak again, he heard her yawn from the other end of the line. "Why don't you take some more meds and get some sleep. You sound like you could use it."

"Yeah probably." She muttered stifling another yawn.

"I'll give you a call when I get to Portland tomorrow."

"Sure thing."

"You gonna be there?" His voice was more hopeful than he'd wanted it to be.

"Should be." Well, it wasn't as definite as he'd have liked but it was a start.

"Alright, I'll talk to you tomorrow then." He sighed and rolled onto his back on the bed. It was too comfortable. Mark could feel himself beginning to nod off and sat up.

"You know it kiddo." She laughed. "Later." Then she was gone.

Mark stared at the receiver in his hand for a long moment before he returned it to the cradle. "Kiddo…" He muttered and stood up, stretching his long muscular frame until the kinks of flights and rental cars were just dim memories and glanced at the clock on the bedside table. "Ah Christ." He muttered at his lateness and turned, heading for the door.

* * *

A rustling sound jolted Cassie awake in the big guest room. She sat bolt upright and immediately regretted it. It started her leg to throbbing but she didn't make a sound. Cassie was sure she'd heard something.

The rustling sounded again followed by footsteps near the living room. Cassie eased herself down to the floor and made her way toward the door, cursing her protesting leg silently as she did.

There was no mistaking it. Someone was in the house. Cassie's stomach dropped. As her heart began pounding out of her chest, the brunette made a quick survey of the room for anything that could be used as a weapon. Short of bashing the intruder over the head with a DVD case, there wasn't much.

"Shit, shit, shit…" She muttered easing the door open for a better look. The footsteps were more distinct without the inch and a half of wood to muffle them. Cassie held her breath.

Damn it. She'd be so hopeful that it was just her sleep-addled brain playing tricks on her.

The brunette poked her head out into the hallway and caught the edge of a shadow moving around near the entrance to the kitchen. The thought of it made her heart pound so hard it felt as if it would jump straight out of her chest.

How could he have found her there? There was no way he could've gotten past the gates! Then again, she'd thought Texas was going to be different. It wasn't. He'd managed to find her here too. When she'd seen that truck sitting outside her property she'd known for sure.

Truth be told, there wasn't any place safe for her anymore. If he'd proven one thing above and beyond all others, it was that he'd never stop looking for her. Never.

_Stop it._ She thought to herself and took a deep breath. There was no way he could get into Mark's fortress of a house and if she was going to do anything, it had to be soon before whoever it was out there realized she was there.

With the though fresh in her mind, Cassie edged the door open as slowly as she possibly could. The last thing she needed was an errant squeak giving her away. Luckily, the door was on her side and didn't make a sound.

Creeping into the hallway, Cassie glanced toward where she'd seen the shadow. She couldn't see it anymore but there was still excess noise so she tiptoed in the other direction heading straight for Mark's office. If there was a weapon in the house, she rationalized; he'd want it in easy reach.

She turned out to be very, very right.

"Holy shit…" She muttered as she closed the door quietly behind her. Two of the four walls were hung floor to ceiling in weaponry. She let her eyes roam over the swords, and maces, and battle-axes, and mourning stars, freely. It was an armory that would've made any medieval warlord salivate.

Unfortunately, Cassie had no idea how to use any of them so she kept looking.

Shuffling her way past a wall dominated by a bookshelf, Cassie threw open the doors of a massive oak armoire and gasped. Yep, she was in Texas all right. And Texans really seemed to like guns.

"Oh hell yes…" Cassie chuckled as she pulled a shotgun from its place inside. A quick scan of the rest of the interior revealed rows and rows of boxes full of rounds. "Well what does this damn thing take?" She mumbled and scanned her memory banks for any cowboy movies she could think of. Nothing sprang to mind. "Don't suppose it looks any different unloaded." She surmised and closed the armoire before working her way back to the hallway.

It was silent. Maybe the perp had decided to leave? Cassie didn't think so as she held the gun like she'd seen in all the movies and made her way toward the living room watching for any sign of life.

"Who the fuck are you?" A woman's voice barked behind her. Immediately, Cassie spun around and pointed.

"Who the fuck are YOU?" She sputtered. Not her best line but as she stared at the statuesque blonde before her it was all she could come up with.

"I'm Mark's girlfriend." She said placing her hands on her hips as she stared at Cassie. The words hit her like a truck. His girlfriend? He hadn't said a damn word about a girlfriend. Suddenly Cassie felt more foolish than she ever had in her life. "Now, I'm going to ask you one more time." The blonde continued. "Who are you and what are you doing in my house?"

Her house! Oh Gods, it was worse than it ever should have been! Not only did she go out on a "date" with an attached man but he was so attached that she lived with him. _Lived with him!_

Cassie dropped the shotgun to the floor and leaned it against the wall. This was so bad…so very, very bad. "Look…uh…"

"Kristy." The woman filled in the blank as she stared at her with murder in her eyes.

"Yeah…look Kristy, Mark brought me here but he never mentioned anyone else living here. I'm really sorry." She shifted her weight self-consciously and winced on her injured leg. Funny how much it hurt now that the adrenaline had retreated. "I'll just get my things and call a cab."

Cassie didn't give her time to respond. Instead, she hobbled in a circle and made a dash for her room. "You don't mean anything you know." Kristy called behind her. It gave Cassie pause.

"What are you talking about?" She asked turning her head in the blonde's direction.

"You…don't…" Kristy began walking toward her with her arms folded. "…Mean anything." Well that was painfully obvious already. Cassie suddenly felt like the biggest schmuck in the world. Why hadn't she asked if he was seeing anyone?

"Look, he brought me here because he witnessed a bike accident I was in and he was nice enough to give me a lift to the hospital. That's all." Cassie muttered dejectedly. She didn't owe that blonde bitch anything but for some reason; the guilt took all the fight out of her.

"That doesn't tell me why you're in my house." Shit. The last thing Cassie needed was someone like her getting wind of what really happened.

"I was sort of out of it after they stitched my leg up. He brought me back here because he doesn't know where I live." Kristy chuckled condescendingly and leaned a shoulder against the wall.

"That's so like Mark." She smiled and trained her blue eyes on Cassie. It made her terribly uncomfortable as she ran a hand through her frazzled, after sleep hair. "He's always one to take in strays."

Cassie choked on a vicious retort. This woman had every right to be angry. Lord knows if Cassie had been in her shoes she'd have already beaten her ass. Then again looking at Kristy, she didn't appear to have ever broken a nail let alone gotten into a fight. The sneers and snide comments must have been as personal as she got. Funny, Mark didn't strike her as the type to go for trophies.

Immediately, she squashed that line of thinking and headed into the bedroom. After grabbing her jacket and vest under Kristy's watchful gaze, she hobbled out into the living room. The blonde followed her.

"What's with all the bags?" Cassie asked before she could help herself. Sitting by the front door was a pile of luggage the size of Mount Everest.

"I don't think our business concerns you." Kristy said from behind her. Ugh, _our business_… It made Cassie's stomach turn but she managed to snatch her prescription bottle off the table without gagging.

"No, I don't suppose it does." Cassie muttered and stood for a moment, looking around. Kristy was quick to help her.

"The phone's in the kitchen. You can get the cab company's number from information." Mercifully the woman must have been happy with the damage she'd done and disappeared back down the hallway.

Cassie sat down heavily on a stool at the counter and yanked the phone off the wall.

"Well…it was fun while it lasted." She sighed and dialed the operator.

After the longest twenty minutes she could ever remember, the cab arrived by the gate and Cassie went to meet it. Shutting the door behind her, she glanced back up the driveway and had to stifle a groan. How could she have been so reckless? A man with a live in girlfriend… Son of a bitch!

"Where to?" The cabbie asked and broke her out of her self-loathing.

"Do you know where the nearest mechanic is?"

"Sure thing. It's just west of town." He said congenially, glancing back in his rearview mirror. For a cab driver, he was quite cheerful and the smiling gray eyes she could see from her seat were just what she needed at the moment.

"Do they work on motorcycles?"

"You're looking for Ray's." He laughed. Cassie nodded to herself. Apparently everyone did know everyone around here. It was refreshing after living like a gypsy for so long.

"That'd be the guy." She laughed back. "Can ya take me there?"

"Sure thing darlin." He said and before Cassie could say another word, they were on the road.


	8. Chapter 8

Mark woke up to a ringing phone and groaned. Glancing over at the clock he groaned louder and reached for the phone.

"Thanks. G'bye." He muttered to the six o'clock wake up call and hung up. Slowly, he rolled himself out of the bed, stretched his sore muscles, and shuffled to the bathroom. He switched on the light and flinched at his reflection in the mirror.

It was too damn early but his flight left at eight so there wasn't a minute to spare. If there was one thing Mark was fond of, it was sleep. He'd happily hurry to the airport to get an extra twenty minutes between the sheets.

Shaking his head to clear it slightly, he sighed and got himself into the shower. By the time he got out he felt slightly better but he couldn't help cursing himself. He couldn't keep his mind from wandering back to Cassie.

"Girl's gonna give me an ulcer." He chuckled as he wrapped a towel around his waist and walked back into the other room.

Immediately, he called the desk and had them call him a cab then set to getting dressed. His eyes however, kept going to his cell phone as it sat on the dresser across from him. Maybe he should call her? Mark said he was going to call her when he got to Portland but obviously he wasn't in Portland yet. Besides, six thirty in the morning was cruel and unusual punishment to anyone. Better he let her sleep with her leg healing anyway. But still…

The next thing he knew, he was across the room with his cell phone in his hands and checking for missed calls. "Damn it…" He muttered and set it aside. "Get a grip old man…"

He'd call her later in Oregon, he thought. "After the event." He added out loud to chastise himself, pulled a long sleeved t-shirt over his head, and tossed the rest of his stuff in his bags just in time for the desk to call him for his cab.

* * *

"Well hey there darlin!" Denny smiled when Cassie pushed her way into the bar. "Where ya been? I ain't seen ya since ya took off with Big Ugly the other night."

Cassie wrinkled her nose and limped over to the bar, tossing her helmet down on top of it. "I'm not talking about him today." Her voice was tight as she spoke. She only hoped Denny wouldn't mention it as she hunched forward and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"He left for the road yesterday didn't he?" Cassie nodded. Denny grinned and nodded back. "Good. He gets irritating if he hangs around too much." In spite of her mood, Cassie laughed.

"I can see where that could happen." She was grinning as Denny poured her a beer from the tap. Denny nodded stoically and held up his hand as if to say he'd heard it all before.

"So, I've gotta ask." He began sliding the beer over to her. "What happened to your leg?"

"My leg?" Cassie blurted.

Denny nodded again as he leaned on the bar near her. Cassie was immediately suspicious but the older man always seemed so genuine she found herself wanting to tell him the whole story about the truck and the hospital trip and Mark's girlfriend, but her wary nature forbade it. It had been a while since she'd been around people she felt comfortable enough to want to talk to. Denny's legitimate concern tugged at that part of her that wanted friends again.

Sighing heavily, Cassie erred on the side of caution. "I caught some gravel on the side of the road and dumped my bike." Denny whistled low.

"Are ya alright?" Before Cassie could respond, Denny was around the bar and prodding gently at her knee.

"Yeah…yeah, I'm fine Den." She chuckled and waved him away pulling her jeans up high enough to show off the bandage covering her stitches. "Caught a big rock sharp enough to do a little damage. No big deal."

Denny's eyebrows pulled together into a frown. "Somethin' tells me you shouldn't be up and walkin on that." Cassie shrugged and swung herself around on her stool to face the bar. The older bartender grunted and walked back around behind it. "You wouldn't be pushin yourself too hard now would you?"

"Me? Nah." Cassie grinned at the playfully father-like tone in his voice. "I've had much worse and actually, it feels a whole lot better today."

"Well that's good I guess. How'd your bike fair?" Cassie wrinkled her nose and took a deep pull on her mug. Denny laughed. "I'll take it that means it's not so good." Cassie shook her head disgustedly.

"No, luckily Ray, is that his name?" When Denny nodded she went on. "He gave me a loaner while he works on it."

"That sounds like Ray. He's got a soft spot for pretty ladies." Denny giggled contentedly and disappeared into the back. When he returned with a case of beer, he continued. "He'll take good care of your bike though. He's the best there is when it comes to restoration."

"Good to know." Cassie grinned and slid her empty mug over to him. Denny caught it without looking up and filled it again before sliding it back.

The ringing phone made her jump. Denny laid a comforting hand on top of hers and hurried over to answer it, wiping his hands on a bar rag.

Cassie let out a breath she'd been holding and swiveled around on her stool, her eyes sliding over the few patrons in the back of the bar. They all looked familiar. Most of them were from the area and Denny's Place seemed to be the central gathering place.

It gave her a sense of belonging even if she hadn't been around long. Texans seemed to have an inherent friendliness she was completely unused to growing up in Detroit and experiencing it, she felt like she'd really been missing something.

"Cindy's not makin it in." Denny's voice sounded behind her. Cassie spun herself back around to look at him.

"No? I hope she's alright." Denny shrugged.

"She's got a little boy and he's not in the best health. When he gets real bad, I make sure she's got all the time she needs."

"That's really great of you." Cassie smiled. The grizzled old bartender blushed and waved off her compliment.

"I just hope I don't get too busy. I'm getting too old to do all this myself." Cassie shook her head at the playful glint in his eyes.

"Den, something tells me you're not as infirm as you like to let on." She grinned and tapped her mug on the counter. Denny shrugged and glanced innocently up at the ceiling before busying himself with filling the coolers behind the bar.

As if on cue, the front door swung open for a group of people who found themselves a table off to the side. Immediately, another group followed. Denny stood up and stretched his back before giving Cassie a wry look and hustling around the bar to greet his customers.

Cassie sat back nursing her beer and watching the growing bustle of the crowd. She'd never seen it that busy but Denny seemed to have it well in hand. As the night moved on however, and more people began showing up, Cassie was sure she could see Denny beginning to get frazzled. His easy smile came fewer and farther between and she could hear him muttering angrily as he hurried back behind the bar.

"Are you okay Den?" Cassie asked leaning way over the bar to get his attention. The bartender glanced up to her quickly with an irritation heavy enough to make her flinch but when he saw it was her talking he smiled.

"I'll manage." He chuckled. "I always do." Cassie watched as he set up a tray full of bottles and hurried back out toward the crowd. "Oh!" Denny said turning back to her. "If you need a refill, just go on around and get it. It'll save me a step." Cassie nodded and glanced down at the dregs in the bottom of her mug. Shrugging, she got up and did as he asked.

Another large group of revelers came in as she was filling her mug. She watched them walk over to the bar and take up every stool along it, hers included. Frowning, Cassie glanced out into the sea of patrons. There weren't but a few tables left in the whole joint and more people were streaming in by the minute.

"Hey, can I get a Bud in a bottle?" One of the guys at the bar yelled over to her. Cassie's head snapped to him.

"Uh sure." She almost chuckled and turned around, searching the glass fronted beer coolers behind her. It only took a moment and she had it in her hand, popping off the cap and sliding it down to him.

"How much?" He grinned taking a deep swig. That was a good question. How much was it anyway?

Cassie looked around behind the bar for anything that had prices on it. Smiling, she found what she was looking for right next to the register. The brunette quickly scanned the price list with her finger.

"Two dollars darlin." She grinned and leaned over the bar toward him. She'd bartended before and it only took a minute to fall back into the routine.

"Keep it." The man at the bar smiled engagingly and tossed a five down. Cassie took it, nodding a thanks and moved on to the next customer.

"What are you doin girl?" Denny laughed outright once he finally made his way back to the bar with a tray of empties.

"Um…helping as best I can tell." She smiled somewhat self-consciously and wiped her hands on the bar towel she'd stuck in her belt. She hadn't meant to take over his bar, it just sort of…happened. It had gotten so busy so quickly there was no way Denny could have kept on top of everything alone. Suddenly though, Cassie was afraid she had stepped way beyond her boundaries.

"You know your way around a bar?" He asked his gray eyes narrowed on her. Cassie was almost sure there was a playful glint to them. She nodded and pulled open one of the coolers with her foot as another cowboy at the bar ordered. "Good." Denny laughed. "You're hired."

Cassie nearly fumbled the bottle she'd been grabbing. "I'm what?" She blurted.

"You're hired." He repeated and dropped the tray. "Empties go in the back in the bins. They're marked." Cassie was still staring at him dumbfounded. "Well get movin! It's only gonna get worse when the band gets here."

"Band? I'm hired? You mean…I work here now?" She babbled still holding the beer. Denny shook his head and sauntered over taking the bottle from her, popping the top, and handing it over the bar.

"Yes, yes, and yes if ya want it." The old bartender looked all together too pleased with himself.

Cassie was a flurry of emotions. Did she want a job? No, not really but she really did like the old man. He'd been so nice to her since she arrived. From the first time she walked in the door he'd tried to befriend her and against her better judgment, he had. Besides, maybe having a regular nine to five could perhaps bring her back across the yawning chasm that had grown between her and normalcy. Yeah, that was it. That was good. "Den, you got a deal."

The older man broke into the biggest grin she'd ever seen on him and wrapped her in a big bear hug. "That's my girl!" He laughed. "Now, can you handle this lot so I can get the stage set up?" Cassie nodded. She didn't trust herself to speak through the lump rising in her throat. There was a camaraderie between she and Denny suddenly and it made her feel terribly comfortable. It was like coming home.

"Thanks Den." She smiled once she was able. Denny gave her a quick wink and hoisted himself up onto the bar itself.

"Hey Everybody!" He yelled.

And to Cassie's surprise, the entire bar responded with, "Hey What?"

"This here's my new bartender!" He called out to them and held her hand up so everyone could see it. "Treat her with all the respect you've never shown me!" The roar of laughter and catcalls was overwhelming but it felt good. Cassie had suddenly become a part of something when she needed it the very most and found herself smiling and hugging the flood of patrons who had come over to meet her and wish her well.

After a moment, Denny shooed them all away so Cassie could in fact do her new job. "Drink orders at the bar everybody!" He called out to them to a chorus of Boos. "Here ya go little girl. Show me what you can do." He winked and ruffled her hair before ducking out into the crowd to ready the stage Cassie had never noticed hiding behind a curtain toward the back of the bar.

Cassie took a deep breath and rolled her neck until it cracked then turned her attention back to the bar. "Alright! Who needs a drink?"

* * *

Mark dragged himself back into his hotel room in Portland and tossed his duffel bag on the floor. He'd gotten beat good that night and all he wanted was a very long, very hot shower and bed…and maybe six or eight aspirin.

"Good God…" He gasped as he stretched his long frame and heard something in the vicinity of his lower back crackle like popcorn. "No more bad chair shots." He grumbled and forced the three steps it took to get from where he was to the bed where he wanted to be.

Sighing heavily he lowered himself gingerly down to the coverlet. It'd been quite a while since he'd taken a beating like that. Generally, no one tried the Undertaker too seriously and at his age Mark was glad of that.

"At my age…" He repeated his thought out loud and was disgusted by it. Sure, he was edging dangerously close to the over forty box on his tax forms but six days out of seven he didn't feel it. Come to think on it, he only ever thought about it after a run in like that night's. A steel, folding chair to the back doesn't feel good at twenty let alone forty. Unfortunately, at forty it seemed to take a little more of the bad ass out of him than it used to. He'd never show it in the ring though. The Undertaker was invincible, unstoppable, and constant. Mark however, was human, mildly lazy, and at that moment, incredibly sore.

Mark rolled over onto his side and winced slightly before settling down in a more comfortable position. "Shower." He grumbled as he shifted again and felt his t-shirt stick to his skin. "Sweaty." But he didn't move right away. Instead, he fished into his pocket for his cell phone. Flipping it open, his breath caught as he looked at the little display. It stated quite plainly that he did indeed have voice mail.

The big man pulled himself into a sitting position and thumbed the button to play the messages as he kicked off his boots.

By the time the mechanical female voice explained that he was at the end of his new messages, he was more disgusted than he had been at thinking about his age. Cassie hadn't called. One had been his mother and the other two coworkers. He was not happy about that at all.

Glancing at his gold watch his stomach dropped. He hadn't realized it was as late as it was. Cassie would probably be asleep. The last thing he wanted to do was wake her.

"She won't hear the phone if she's sleeping." He muttered to himself and immediately began dialing his home number. He said he'd call after the event in Portland and that's exactly what he was doing.

The phone rang…and rang…and rang…until the machine finally picked up.

"Cassie, it's Mark. Don't get up if you're sleepin. I just wanted to see how you were doin. I'll see ya soon. My schedule got changed up a bit so I'll be home tomorrow." He said and hung up resisting the urge to throw his cell phone at the wall. For some reason he was blaming it for her lack of communication. In his dreary mood, its little blue screen showing absolutely no missed calls from his number was mocking him.

He took a deep breath and settled for dropping the phone on the floor before hoisting his massive body off the bed and stripping off his shirt and pants. His mind was running circles around itself. He hated that. He especially hated that a woman he barely knew was making him do it.

If there was one thing Mark always prided himself on, it was his ability to keep a clear head in nearly any situation but some scooter trash beauty sauntered into his favorite bar and his normally collected demeanor shot directly to his groin and refused to respond. Damn it.

Granted, it wasn't just his Y chromosome that drew him to her. He liked the way she thought. Her sense of humor kept him in stitches from the time they sat down at the diner outside town until he'd taken her back to her bike.

The big man frowned slightly at the memory of the truck barreling down on her but he shook it off and thought instead about the nonchalance with which she handled nearly being killed. Hell, her worry had been his bike lying in the road just in time for the morning commuters. Mark knew one thing for sure, there weren't a whole lot of women who could take a tumble from a bike and still be in good enough shape to bicker with him. Her courage had probably gotten him most of all.

Again, Mark tried to ignore the feeling of foreboding in his gut.

"Tomorrow…" He told his reflection in the bathroom mirror as he got out his razor and prepared to shave. "You'll find out everything you need to know tomorrow."

Normally, extra off time would have made him angry but the unexpected injury to his latest feud couldn't have come at a better time. He didn't like that Kurt had a slight tear in his bicep and he disliked moving up the storyline but he was going home early and on an extended leave. It would be good for him he supposed; especially with as little as he was able to concentrate that night in the ring. "Too much on my mind." He muttered then chuckled at himself. "You're mooning like a high school kid." His reflection didn't have much to say about it so Mark shook his head and moved onto his shower.

* * *

Cassie watched Denny lock up the front door as she collected glasses and bottles from the tables and stifled a big yawn. She'd worked her ass off and even if part of her hated to admit it, it felt pretty damn good.

At first, she'd been afraid of memories she didn't want resurfacing but Denny's place was as different from her old bar as night was to day. It felt good to do what she knew again. Since her mother had died and left Cassie the club she'd owned, she hadn't stepped foot behind a bar. It hurt and made her think about her mother too much. She'd sold the place and never looked back.

"Cassie darlin? You alright?" Denny asked her. Cassie shook her head and looked over at him.

"Yeah Den, don't worry about me." She smiled and stretched, then winced. Suddenly her leg hurt like hell. Oddly enough, it hadn't given her any trouble all night.

"You looked kinda far away there for a minute." The concern in his voice truly touched her as he walked over and put a fatherly arm around her shoulders. "I'll get the glasses. Why don't you sit down and take some weight off that leg." Cassie was about to protest but found her leg had made up her mind for her. The brunette attempted to put weight on it and it buckled.

"Yeah…maybe I will." She tried to laugh but the pain cut it short. Denny smiled and took her tray heading for the bar.

"Oh and you're crashin here tonight." He informed her as he washed them.

"Why would I be doing that?" Cassie asked and brought her hand up to catch another yawn.

"That'd be why right there." He said shaking a wet rag in her direction for emphasis. "And you're in no shape to ride with that leg."

"Denny, don't worry about it. I'll be fine." Even as she said it she ran her options through her mind. The results were well and truly depressing. She didn't have any other options. Mark's place had been vetoed against her will and her own little slice of home was being watched by a psycho. Just fucking lovely.

"Nope. You're stayin here. End of story." He chuckled and scratched at his beard briefly. "I will not have ya getting yourself killed when you made me so much money tonight." Cassie laughed outright.

"Okay…" She relented and part of her was quite relieved to do so. "Alright, I'll stay here."

"Good, then you can open up." He laughed heartily, obviously quite pleased with himself. "It's been a damn long while since I could sleep in."

"Yes sir." Cassie teased with a mock salute. Denny looked at her over the bar with one eyebrow raised.

"You can knock that 'sir' crap off right now." He grumbled. "It makes me feel old." Cassie laughed holding her hands up defensively.

"No problem boss."

Denny grinned impishly and glanced toward the swinging doors that lead to the storage area. "Just be sure and set the alarm clock back there. This place is so sound proofed you'd never even hear the phone ring from there."

"Okay." She said congenially and hoisted herself back to her feet. Now you are leaving. I'll take care of all this before morning." Grabbing him by the shoulders, she steered him away from the sink and toward the door. Denny didn't put up much of a fight.

"In my experience, I know never to argue with a beautiful woman." He chuckled and dug his keys out of his pocket. "Lock this behind me and I'll get you a key made tomorrow so you won't be trapped in here all night anymore."

"Alright Den. Be safe. When will I see you tomorrow?" The old bartender shrugged and flashed her a sideways grin.

"You can handle it right?" Cassie nodded. "I'll be in round about four. My number's by the phone if you need anything before then."

"Good deal. Now get out of here so I can throw the party you're not invited to." She laughed and shoved him out the door. Denny shook his head playfully but smiled and let her shut the door behind him.

Once she'd clicked the lock into place the sheer silence of the place began to bother her. There were no more laughing voices, no more screaming blues guitar. It was as if once the customers left for the night, they took the soul of the place with them. The thought made Cassie shiver.

"Get a grip, it's just closed. It's not dead." She chided herself but it didn't stop her from fishing a handful of change out of her pocket and walking it over to the jukebox.

Once Stevie Ray Vaughan's wailing guitar began to pour from the speakers, she felt a bit better. Returning to the bar, she picked up where Denny had left off with the dishes and for the first time in what seemed like forever, she forgot about her problems and did her job. It was good. It was damn good.


	9. Chapter 9

The alarm must have been going off for quite a while. When it finally managed to make it's way through Mark's sleep-addled brain, he'd leapt out of bed, called a cab, and jammed everything he had back into his bags.

By the time he arrived at the airport, he was in such a foul mood, he did something he would normally never do. He yelled at one of the security guards. Bad idea. Suddenly, the big man was tapped for a random search. He took it in as much stride as he was able as the uniforms pawed through his hastily packed duffel but his eyes kept trailing up to the white faced clock on the wall. He was never going to make his flight. Never.

As it turned out, he was right. Mark skidded up to the gate just in time to see his plane taxiing away from the jet way. The big man let out a string of four letter words loud enough to make the people at the next gate flinch and made his way over to the desk.

The woman behind it was as nice as she could be considering the circumstances and did her very best to find him a spot…on standby. Mark gave her a tight smile and turned, falling into one of the plastic airport chairs.

Three hours later, he found himself folded into the last seat, in coach, on the next earliest flight heading back to Houston. Granted, he probably could have waited for something in business class to open up but with the way his luck was running, he wasn't willing to chance it and he didn't think his brain could take any more. All he could think about was Cassie.

"Oh thank friggin God." Mark grumbled as he rumbled up his driveway with an odd twisting in his gut. It'd been the day from Hell from the moment he woke up and realized he was late and he was about to come face to face with the object of his agonizing. Cassie would either be inside, or she wouldn't. And judging by the fact that he'd called his house well over a dozen times since leaving for the airport to no avail, he was pretty sure he knew the answer.

That rationale however, did not stop him from being hopeful.

"Cassie? Darlin? You in here?" He called opening his door and dropping his bag haphazardly on the floor. There was no answer. Mark swore under his breath and headed down the hallway to the guest room he'd set her up in before he left. "Damn it…" The room was immaculate. She'd made the bed and left no indication that she'd ever been there…at all.

Mark deflated as he turned and walked back down the hall toward the kitchen. She left. How could she leave? Sure, the circumstances were strange at best but he'd thought there was a connection. Hell, he was positive there was! Could he have been so very wrong about her actions? He didn't think so but suddenly he wasn't sure at all. Maybe she'd just been being polite about dinner.

Mark shook his head. No, she wasn't being cordial. She'd gone back into Denny's to apologize to him for being rude and then she'd sat and talked to him and laughed. "Stop reachin…" He admonished himself as he walked into the kitchen and slapped the play button on his answering machine. There was nothing there but his messages.

Disgusted, the big man stalked over and threw open his fridge grabbing a beer. Popping the top as he walked out onto his deck he was still running his day with Cassie through his head. Yeah, she'd been interested. She may have been tightlipped when it came to talking about herself but she was throwing out all the right signals. She'd even come back to his house!

"Like I gave her a choice…" He groaned and took a deep drink from his bottle. Suddenly, he was so disgusted with himself he wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear.

Sighing heavily, he leaned a hip against the redwood railing, downing the other half of his beer and gazed out over his property. It was a beautiful view but it was Sara that made the beauty of the place stand out to him. She'd been so in love with the land that she'd virtually begged for him to buy it. Like an idiot, he'd done it and now he was stuck paying the mortgage on a reminder of what his livelihood had done to his marriage. She couldn't stand being alone and he couldn't stop doing what he loved, even for her.

He rolled his eyes and pushed off with his hip, walking down the stairs and across the yard. What the hell was he doing? The girl blew him off and there he was, moping over a relationship gone bad years ago. God, the feisty little brunette had gotten further under his skin than he could have fathomed.

A glimmer of hope stirred in him as he pushed through the big barn doors. Cassie had really taken to the horses.

"Hello? Anybody home?" He called as he stepped inside. The only response was the anxious stamping and whinnying of his favorite animals. Smiling in spite of himself, he walked over to Thanatos and gave him a pat on his soft black nose. The horse nickered contentedly and pushed into his hand.

"You miss me boy?" Mark chuckled and reached up to scratch him behind the ears. "Yeah, I think you did."

"Boss?" Mark turned at the sound of the familiar voice. "Oh, hey boss. Didn't expect ya back so soon." Manny smiled as he walked through the back doors of the bar, wiping his hands on a scrap of towel.

"Hey Manny. What's up?"

"Nothing here boss." He shrugged. "Just finished running the boys here and was about to pack it in for the afternoon." Mark nodded and went over to say hello to Chronos as well. The Gray whinnied happily and nibbled at the handful of oats he offered him. Mark chuckled and gave him an affectionate pat on the neck before wiping his hands on the thighs of his jeans and turning back to Manny.

"You didn't happen to see that brunette I was with the other day did you?" He asked him. Manny shook his head.

"No, I didn't see anybody when I got here. I didn't come through the house though. I generally don't when you're not home. Why?"

Mark opened his mouth to explain then waved it off. "Don't worry bout it. I just haven't been able to get in touch with her. Uh…thanks again Manny. I'll see you later." The good-natured Mexican reached out and shook Mark's hand before grabbing a jacket off a peg in the wall and heading out the back.

Sighing heavily, Mark stood with his hands on his hips. What to do? He had no idea. Part of him rationalized that he should go back inside and make sure everything was where it was supposed to be but he wasn't ready to believe Cassie was a con artist or a thief. No, but he did need to talk to her.

Before he knew it, Mark had wandered back to the front of his property. He chuckled to himself as he walked over and threw his leg over his bike. They keys were still in the ignition. He'd been so preoccupied about finding Cassie that he'd just left them there. That was never good.

"Ah well, should've figured I'd be goin back out." He chuckled and started the bike again, tearing down his long driveway and back into the street.

Mark rode for a good hour before he found himself pulling onto a dirt and gravel driveway not terribly far from Denny's Place. Immediately, he felt guilty. He should not be there and he knew it but he had to see. He had to find out for sure…

As he rolled into a clearing and cut his engine he was taken aback by what he saw. There were piles of cardboard boxes everywhere around a small singlewide trailer. It looked like the place was just being moved into.

"This can't be right." He muttered to himself and hopped off his bike. His first instinct was to go over and knock on the door but…he wasn't even sure he was in the right place. Sure, Cassie had said she bought the place but how could he know she was telling him the truth? He didn't and it killed him. He was so sure about her.

Shaking off the oncoming malaise, he took a deep breath, opened the screen door, and pounded on the one beneath. Much to his surprise, it popped open. _I'll be damned…_ He thought to himself and debated barging in. If it was Cassie, she'd probably be pretty pissed but he was confident he could talk himself out of it. If it wasn't….

"Fuck it." He grumbled and stepped inside. Immediately, he was knew he was in the right place. There wasn't much to be seen but strewn all over the floor were boxes of photos of Cassie with a man. Mark bent over and picked one up and felt an overwhelming but totally unfounded wave of jealousy. It was obvious that the man in the pictures was more than a friend. Mark hated the way he was looking at her in the photo and hated even more the way she was looking back.

He made a disapproving noise in his throat and moved to drop the picture. "Nope." He said to himself and tore it in half stashing the part with Cassie's image into his vest pocket. All of a sudden, he was terribly embarrassed. What the hell was he thinking taking her picture?

_Too late now ya old pervert…_ He thought reproachfully and headed back out the door. It was obvious she hadn't been there; therefore there was no point in staying.

With a final sheepish look back, he got back on his bike and left.

* * *

"Denny's Place." Cassie said as she picked up the ringing phone. "Yep, open until two." She hung up the phone with a feeling of satisfaction. Taking the job at Denny's Place had been absolutely the correct decision. Since she'd opened the bar that morning, she'd felt like she had a real life again. It was something she'd assumed she'd never have again and she was loving it.

Smiling, she wiped her hands on the bar towel tucked in her belt and edged out from behind the bar to check on the tables. Cindy was still out with her son but Cassie didn't mind. Working alone never bothered her in the slightest. In fact, she preferred it.

"You guys doing alright?" She asked smiling sweetly at a table of grizzled old biker types.

"Oh yeah darlin." The one closest to her said and patted her suggestively on the hip. She didn't pay any attention to it. Cassie knew it was all in fun. "Sure glad Denny decided to pretty up the place." The brunette chuckled and grabbed the empty pitcher from their table.

"Then I guess I'll just refill this won't I?" She grinned winking as she made her way back to the bar. Yeah, she did miss the camaraderie that came from working in bars. She'd been there less than two days and already the regulars knew her name and made sure she knew theirs too. Everyone that came in had a warm smile and at least one interesting story to tell. It was nice to be there and it was even nicer that she didn't catch herself dwelling on her problems.

Cassie took the pitcher back to the guys and hurried away to whistles and catcalls. She grinned ambiguously over her shoulder at them and went back to marrying bottles behind the bar.

"Hey Denny, I can't find…" Cassie's head shot up at the voice. "Cassie…" She was rendered totally immobile. What the hell was he doing there? Wasn't he supposed to be gone! Christ! This was the last thing she needed!

Judging from the look on his face, she was the last person he had expected to see as well. Good. It was a small victory but the sheer discomfort on his face made her just that much happier.

"Denny's not here." She said dryly and went back to the two bottles of vodka in front of her.

"What…what are you doin here little girl?" Did he sound relieved? What the hell…

"Den offered me a job. I took it." She snapped. Oh no, there was no way she was giving in to him again. To her surprise, Mark looked shaken.

"Well…where's Cindy?"

"She took some time off." Cassie glanced up at let her irritation show. Wisely, Mark just nodded.

For a long moment, he didn't say anything. In fact, he was quiet so long Cassie thought he'd left. She refused to look up at him. If she did, she knew what would happen. He'd lock those green eyes on her and she'd melt. Cassie did not want to melt. This man had definitely left out some important details about his life and she was not terribly forgiving about that. Too many times she'd let small things slide…

"I…thought you were stayin." He finally said with more than a little trepidation in his voice. Cassie heard a stool scrape on the ground and she cursed to herself. Apparently he wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. She didn't answer him. Instead, she slammed the empty bottle down into a crate at her side. The bottle exploded with a loud crash as she disappeared into the back room.

* * *

Mark stood staring dumbly as the double doors to the back swung and forth forlornly. She…was mad at…him? The big man couldn't seem to wrap his brain around it.

"What the fuck…" He whispered to himself. With each syllable he spoke, he got angrier. What had he done to deserve this? Not a god damned thing! He'd taken care of her bike, he'd taken care of her, and when she had nowhere to go, he'd given her a place to stay. His place! And SHE was angry? "Oh fuck this…"

Rolling his neck until it cracked, he took a deep breath and crashed through the doors himself.

* * *

"Now wait just a god damn minute!" Mark roared as the doors swung open behind her. Cassie jumped and nearly dropped the case of beer in her hands. "Where the fuck do you get off treating me like this after what I did for you?"

The brunette was too stunned to speak as he raged, red faced, in front of her.

"I thought we were at the very least friends and you don't even have the decency to leave a fuckin note? Not even a 'yeah fuck you, I got better digs'? Nothin?" He went on.

"I don't owe you anything." She finally managed to spit back when Mark stopped to catch his breath. "I never lied to you."

"Lied to me? No, you just used me for a place to crash and disappeared."

"Apparently I didn't go far enough! You found me!" Cassie screamed back. "After what I found out, you're the last fucking person I want to see!" Mark actually shook his head in disbelief.

"What? You got a problem with guns little Detroit girl?" He growled regaining his composure slightly. "Cause, as far as I can tell that's all I didn't tell you about!"

Cassie could not believe her ears. What the hell was he thinking? How could he forget a live in girlfriend? Then, realization set in. She must have been out of town. She wasn't supposed to be home at all.

"What? Cat got your fuckin tongue?" He went on as she thought. Cassie's eyes drifted maliciously back to his face and she couldn't stop the laughter from bubbling out of her. She was so angry she wanted scream at him but all that would come out was a maniacal laughter she couldn't seem to stop. Frankly it made her nervous but that was another problem for another day. In the here and now, she had this gigantic redneck to deal with.

"WHERE'S YOUR FUCKING GIRLFRIEND TAKER?" She screamed once she was able. Mark was still yelling but she'd stopped listening. Frankly, all she wanted was him out of her bar so she could get back to work and forget the last couple of days had even happened.

Mark's voice dried up mid word. What? Girlfriend? What the hell was she talking about?

"What are you goin on about?" He managed. "Are you insane?" Where would she get an idea like that? The big man couldn't process it and trying to was drying up his anger. That would not do.

"Oh come on Mark! Didn't you think I'd find out?" Cassie was screaming. Silently, Mark berated himself. Damn she looked good when she was angry. "Was she supposed to be out of town? Was that it?"

"What?" He blurted. "What the fuck are you talking about?" Cassie seethed at his "ignorance". She knew better. She'd _seen_ the woman! He was not getting out of this.

"Does Kristy ring a bell?" She all but shrieked. Mark's mouth snapped shut as he took a step backward.

"Kristy? This is about fucking Kristy?" He said sounding slightly more reasonable. Whatever, Cassie was not in the mood to be reasonable.

"She wasn't terribly happy to see me. Not that I could blame the woman! I wouldn't be terribly thrilled to see another woman in my house either!" She raged on. It did not have the effect she desired. As she opened her mouth to go on, she could see the corner of the big man's mouth twitching upwards. "What are you laughing at!"

"Kristy showed up?" He chuckled and immediately his body language changed. Mark went from hulking over her, hands in fists at his sides, to leaning against a crate full of beer bottles laughing. "That stupid bitch…" He was still laughing. "I told her to get her ass out."

Cassie sputtered. "That's the best you can do?"

"What? It's the truth. I shoulda known that bitch was gonna be trouble." He continued giggling. "Guess I shoulda changed the code on the gate too."

"I don't believe you." She fumed, her voice barely more than a whisper. Mark shrugged.

"Ask Denny. He'll tell ya. I threw her out a while ago. Seems she was more interested in the Undertaker than she was in me."

Cassie couldn't even speak. She glared at the big man and pushed past him back to the front of the bar. Broke up with her… RIGHT! That was one line she was not falling for. Sure, she was a bit younger than Mark but she was not born yesterday.

Shaking her head, she growled in her throat and slammed the case of beer down on the counter. Some of the patrons jumped but she didn't care. There was no way she was going to let this slide.

"Go on, call him if you don't believe me." Mark said appearing through the doors. Cassie turned and glared at him. "Go ahead. I'll even dial."

Before Cassie could manage another rant, he was dialing the phone and holding the receiver out to her. Reluctantly, she took it.

"Den?" She said when he answered. "I've got a really weird question for you…Yeah, who's Kristy?" There was a pause as she listened. "Oh…really…great….Okay…yeah see you then."

Mark was smiling as she slammed down the phone. "Told ya."

"Maybe he's lying for you." Cassie pouted crossing her arms over her chest. Mark shook his head and walked past her to pour himself a beer.

"Yeah, that's exactly it." He teased, his voice dripping with enough sarcasm to make her insane.

"Just…shut up would you?"

"Yeah, I think I will." He sighed and downed his beer, setting the mug in the sink. "I tell you what. You believe whatever you want to believe and when you get out of here call me if you wanna get something to eat and talk this shit out like normal adults." Cassie just stared angrily at him as he spoke walking around her and out from behind the bar. "Whichever way you want it." And then he was gone.

"Damn it…" Cassie muttered as she watched the door swing shut behind him. "God damn it…" So Kristy was a conniving bitch. How so unlike her not to see it. Then again, how often did something she actually wanted come along anymore? Not very often and it scared her. Kristy's presence had just given her the out she needed before she let herself get too close. Now that excuse had been conveniently removed from the table and Mark had tossed the ball back into her court.

Sighing, she reached into her back pocket and pulled out the card Mark had given her. Her stomach tying itself in knots, her eyes drifted over his number over and over again. "Shit on me…" She whined and stuck it back where she'd found it. "I hate apologizing."


	10. Chapter 10

_**A/N**: Sorry the update has been so long in coming...The evil plot bunny has reared its ugly head again and forced me into another venture. It's posted up now too.. lol However, now that I've gotten the first couple chapters of it out of my head I can come back and get going on the rest of these again. As always, THANK YOU for the reviews...They really keep me writing. I get so down on myself and it's you guys that make me think what I'm doing might not be total crap. lol Enjoy!_

* * *

Mark paced across his living room for what seemed like the eight hundredth time. Since he left Denny's Place he'd been so on edge he didn't know what to do with himself. He'd been to the barn and taken both horses out for exercise and even trying to keep the very spirited Thanatos under control didn't scratch the surface of his anxiety.

"C'mon girl." He muttered and glanced out the front windows as if he could see the gate from there. Shaking his head he stalked into the kitchen. He grumbled under his breath and yanked open the fridge to grab another beer, his seventh since he'd gotten back from the barn. Funny, it didn't seem to help his discomfiture either.

Wandering back into his living room, Mark flopped down on his couch sighing and fished behind him for the remote control. Television was good for distraction. "Come on…" He grumbled again and even sounded like a petulant child to himself.

What the hell had gotten into him? Mooning around over some chick was not in his make up but every time he thought about Cassie his stomach tightened and his heart rate jumped. He wanted to kick himself.

Mark wrinkled his nose at the thought and downed his beer, setting the bottle aside with the rest. As he flipped channels, the alcohol finally began to do its thing. The big man found himself sliding further into his couch and took a deep breath to clear his mind. It didn't clear much but he did suddenly feel better. As a matter of fact, he felt pretty damn good.

"Alright…" He chuckled and leaned back trying to stare at the flickering box in front of him. Albeit slower, his eyes still found their way back to the windows. He cursed himself inwardly and did his damnedest to stop but as his thumb clicked on without him, he stared at the front door, willing the little intercom beside it to squawk.

When it finally did, he about jumped out of his skin. The remote went flying as he leapt up, hit the button to open the gates, and cracked open the front door. His heart was nearly pounding out of his chest but he tried to look nonchalant as he leaned his hip against the back of the couch. He was still focused on the television but he could see headlights in front of the house. This was it. Maybe he could get something out of her.

"Just stop it old man…" He grumbled to himself and dug his fingernails into his palm. "This is ridiculous." No matter how much he said it, it didn't do much to calm him. Mark was so wound up he was listening for footsteps crunching over the gravel that led to the porch.

He closed his eyes as he heard them and took a deep breath, willing the door to open quicker. He turned as he heard it.

"What the fuck are you doin here?" He blurted.

"I came to see you Taker." Kristy answered smiling sweetly as she walked, hips swaying, over to him. Mark grimaced.

"First off, I thought I told you to get out of here. Second, stop callin me that." He growled and shifted himself away from her reaching hands. Kristy chuckled to herself and kept coming.

"C'mon Taker, I know you didn't mean it." She purred and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Look, you need to leave…now." He growled as he dislodged himself from her grip and stalked over to the door to hold it open. Kristy sighed contentedly and sat down on the couch, gazing at him with her blue eyes. It made his skin crawl.

"You don't really want me to leave." She scolded like he was a disobedient, yet over indulged child and patted the couch next to her. "C'mere big man."

"Get out Kristy." He persisted. She had to go. If Cassie showed up and saw her there all hell would break loose. "I thought I made myself perfectly clear when I told you to stop being a skank and to get out of my house." Kristy laughed good-naturedly and lifted herself from the couch.

"You see? I know you don't mean that. If you did, you would've changed the gate code sooner." She went on, running her hands down his chest as she said it. Mark growled low in his throat and did his best to keep from throwing her out bodily. True, he hated the bitch. She was a moneygrubber and in it for the prestige. Too bad he hadn't figured that out before his loneliness got the better of him and he'd moved her in.

"I did change the code ya goofy bitch." He snapped and swatted her hand away. As a rule, Mark didn't hit women. His size alone was enough to make him think twice about it but the little blonde in front of him was pushing her luck. She always had and now that he had no vested interest in her he was quite nearly willing to shake the hell out of her just to make her go away.

"But only when you were sure I wasn't coming back." She continued pressing herself against him, her face plastered to his chest.

"I believe I told you not to come back." He grumbled and wormed his way out of her grasp. "So what are you doing here?"

Kristy giggled coquettishly and took a giant step toward him. "I told you, I wanted to see you."

Mark shook his head and pushed past her out his front door and onto the porch. "Go." He commanded with a hand on his hip and his eyes cast down to the cement beneath his feet. "Now."

"Taker…" She began her hands held out in front of her as she followed him. Her tone had changed slightly. There was a tension in her that wasn't there when she was so sure he hadn't meant what he said. "Look…"

"No. Abso-fucking-lutely not." Mark said definitively and it was all he could do to keep from grinning.

"Come on now big guy." She softened her tone and pressed on, reaching gingerly out to stroke his hand. "Let's talk about this. I can forgive you the brunette…"

Mark's head snapped up, his eyes going dark as she kept talking. The blood pounding through his head dulled out the rest of her tirade. "Shut up. You shut the fuck up." He growled and resisted the urge to shove her back. "You don't know anything girl."

Kristy's eyes nearly popped out of her head at the venom in his words. "C'mon baby…I know why you brought her back here. You knew I'd come back and find her here." She went on keeping her voice as level as possible and peeled his hand off of his hip to wrap her small manicured fingers around it. Mark couldn't even protest. He was so dumbfounded! She was serious; the goofy broad was dead serious. "I'll admit it, it worked. I got jealous." She grinned and brought his fingers up to her lips.

Mark's eyebrows pulled into a disgusted frown and he pulled his hand away. Kristy immediately grabbed for it again, hugging it hard to her chest. "No!" Mark spat in irritation and shook his head. "Get it through your head woman, I don't want you here!"

"But Taker…" Kristy blubbered; her eyes brimming over with unshed tears. "Mark I don't want to…"

"Kristy, I don't care." He said calmly. "You ruined anything I had for you when I found our vacation pictures on the Internet." The blonde's mouth snapped shut and all the color drained from her face.

"You…I didn't…someone…stole those…" She stammered shaking her head.

Mark wiped his hand on his thigh and bit back a laugh. Stole them his ass. "Submitted by bikiniblonde for Taker at hotmail dot com." He smiled as she shriveled in on herself. "Yeah, they post that stuff on those fan sites."

"Taker…Mark…I…" She continued, her mascara running freely down her face.

"Get out of my sight." Mark ordered her and stepped back his eyes cold as she turned to leave.

* * *

Cassie's heart was pounding as she turned toward Mark's huge iron gate. She hadn't called. She wasn't going to show up but after she closed the bar, she couldn't figure out what to do with herself. Yes, she owed Mark an apology. She knew that but for some reason she couldn't make herself dial the numbers. 

Instead, she'd gone out on her borrowed bike and wasted a tank of gas. Well, perhaps wasted was the wrong word, riding at night always helped her think and the only conclusion she could come to was that she had to face him and tell him how very wrong she was.

"Damn it…" She muttered looking up. The gate was open. He'd known she would come.

Taking a deep breath she eased onto the throttle and headed up the long driveway.

As Cassie rounded a gentle curve and sighted the house a set of headlights flashed on and nearly blinded her. "Son of a bitch!" She cursed and swerved into the grass. Looking up, she could see Mark's massive form silhouetted in the porch lights and swore. If he was watching, who was leaving?

"Oh hell no…" She growled and trained her eyes on the passing car. The blonde hair was enough to set her teeth on edge and her blood to boiling. "I THOUGHT SHE WAS GONE TAKER!" Cassie screamed and flashed him a choice finger. She didn't know if he saw it or not but he damn sure heard her. A grim satisfaction passed through her as she saw his head swivel in her direction.

For good measure, she stuck up her middle finger again and turned her bike around, gunning the engine as she tore back toward the street.

* * *

"Cassie?" Mark whispered to himself in disbelief. "Damn it!" He barked as realization set in, digging his keys from his pocket as he leapt off the porch and swung his leg over his bike. 

He had to catch her and explain! If he didn't find her now, he never would. That much he knew for certain. She was as skittish as a field mouse and if he didn't let her know exactly what went on, she'd go to ground and disappear from his life forever.

As he made it to the street, he caught her taillight flash around a corner to his left. Gunning the throttle, Mark followed suit tearing around the same curve.

God she was in a hurry! Now that they were on a straight shot the brunette was hauling ass. The big man glanced down at his speedometer and let out a breath. He was going eight-five easy and she was still pulling away.

"C'mon little girl. Don't be like this." He said to her even though she knew he couldn't hear him. Of all the stupid luck… Murphy sure did have some sort of vested interest in him and Mark for the life of him couldn't figure out what he'd done to deserve it. _Must've been Hitler in my past life or something..._ He thought and fishtailed himself around another corner after her.

Where the hell was she going? Mark couldn't figure out what she thought she was doing but he followed suit anyway. She'd taken him on one hell of a wild goose chase and all he could figure is that she was heading back to Denny's. She worked for him maybe she was using the back room. Growling, Mark glanced back down at his speedometer. He was edging closer to 90 and still he couldn't catch her.

Damn her! Why did she have show up right at that moment? Couldn't she have waited five minutes? Shaking his head Mark cursed under his breath and made a hard right behind Cassie. His brain was already turning it around to make it her fault… It wasn't. If it was anyone's it was his. He should've changed the code on his gate sooner. He should've been firmer with Kristy…"Not that it'd make a difference." He groaned and lay hard on his brakes. "Damn it!" Mark watched Cassie fly over a set of railroad tracks just in time to miss being creamed by the cattle guard. "You crazy fuckin…" Mark's words trailed off into a frustrated scream.

Hopping off his bike, Mark picked up a rock and through it as hard as he could into the night venting all his pent up rage and frustration with it. "Stupid…" He admonished himself as well as Cassie's antics and narrowed his eyes on the train.

At least it was going by at a good clip. Maybe he could catch her. How far could she get in five minutes? With the thought, the big man's head dropped. Chuckling ruefully, he climbed back onto his bike to wait.

* * *

Glancing over her shoulder, all Cassie could see was the train trundling across the tracks as she put some more distance between herself and it. What the hell could Mark be thinking chasing her? What could he possibly have to say? Just how naïve did he think she was? God! The whole night was ridiculous! Hell, if it were possible, since she got to Texas her already odd life had taken one giant turn toward the bizarre and it was all because of the big freak that was following her. 

Growling softly under her breath, the brunette hit her brakes and eased up a long gravel driveway to her left. If there was one place she was nearly positive he wouldn't find her it was at home. Cassie wasn't even sure Mark knew where she'd settled and that was a plus. All she wanted to do was grab the few things that meant anything to her and get back on the road. Maybe on the way out she'd stick a note to the bar and let Denny know things hadn't quite turned out the way she wanted them to. It was the least she could do, the old man had done nothing but be kind to her.

"God damn it…" Cassie sighed and stopped halfway between the road and her trailer. She was starting to love Texas. She didn't want to leave but how the hell could she possibly stay? Mark and Denny were the only people she could claim as friends and one of them had proven to be one hell of a son-of-a-bitch. A job in a hole in the wall bar wasn't exactly a resounding reason to stay but it had made her feel normal again if only for a minute.

Besides, it was only a matter of time…

Cassie shivered and cut off the thought. "Time to go…" She breathed and looked up at the stars. There were so many…the sky was so big there. A slight wrenching in her heart brought her attention back to the here and now. She could hear Mark's engine coming closer. Apparently the train had been shorter than she'd hoped. No big deal.

With a heavy sigh, Cassie dug in her feet and started walking her bike the rest of the way.

* * *

As Mark continued down the deserted road, his heart was plummeting further toward his feet. There was nothing in front of him but his own headlight and endless miles of asphalt. 

"Cassie…" He sighed. "Where'd you go girl?" There was no sign of her taillight in the distance, there was nothing.

As his mood bottomed out, Mark slowed to a crawl and started into a U-turn. As his headlight passed over the shoulder a small red reflector caught his eye. Immediately, his heart set to pounding again. _Her house…it was right near by._

His eyes focused on the side of the road, Mark scoured the darkness for a break in the scrub, anything that would signify a driveway and before long he had it.

Swinging his bike onto the small gravel path, his breath caught in his throat. Chrome was flashing in the beam of his headlight.

"Cassie!" He called over his rumbling engine. She didn't stop. In fact, it looked like she started moving faster.

"Go away Mark!" She snapped back once she realized he was following her again. "Just…go away! I've got nothing to say to you!

From behind her, she heard him grumble something she was sure wasn't terribly flattering. Against her better judgment, the big man's foul mood made her smile. If she was sure of anything, she knew that Mark deserved to suffer a bit for deceiving her.

"Cassie, c'mon now." Mark tried again gunning the engine softly to try and gain on her. The brunette had already dropped her kickstand and was heading for the door of the trailer. "Talk to me woman! Don't I get to explain?"

"I don't hear you…" She countered jogging up the steps.

Swearing, Mark set his own kickstand and stumbled climbing off his bike after her. "Damn it girl…" He began and started after her then stopped as a red blinking light caught his attention from under the steps. "CASSIE STOP!" He screamed and took off at a dead run.

"God damn you!" Cassie barked as her hand was wrenched off the doorknob, Mark's massive weight pulling her backward off the little porch. "LET ME GO!" She went on fighting and watched her front door creak open slowly. As she hit the ground with Mark's incredible bulk crashing down beside her, Cassie made out a minute beeping in the distance. It started slow but got faster and faster until it was one long irritating trill in her ears and all hell broke loose.

As she watched, a massive fireball seemed to appear where her trailer had been. For a moment that seemed to go on forever she stared at it marveling at the magnitude and beauty of it. It was so bright she had to squint and then everything went black. A weight on her back kept her pinned to the dirt. Mark was covering her with himself, but it didn't stop the wave of blistering heat from rolling over her like a freight train that roared so loud she thought her eardrums might burst.

Then, as quick as it had started, it was gone and the cold desert night was silent again. She could hear nothing but her own frantic heartbeat and Mark's labored breathing above her.

"Oh my god…" She gasped and pushed up, trying to move. Suddenly she knew what'd happened but she had to see. "Oh my god…Oh my god…Oh my god…"

"Cassie? You okay?" Mark whispered and shifted to get a look at her. "Cassie?"

"My house…" She gasped and rolled toward the dark scorch mark littered with burning debris that had been her home. "Oh my god my house…"

"Cassie…C'mon girl, look at me." Mark ordered and grabbed for her arm as she stood up and attempted to stagger toward the chaos. The brunette shook out of his grasp and kept going. "Don't go over there. It's not safe."

Mark's words barely registered in her mind as she stared ahead. Nothing around her mattered but what was in front of her…or what had been. Her new life was gone. He'd done it again. He'd found her again and this time he'd upped the ante. "I was supposed to be in there." She croaked and felt the tears working their way down her cheeks against her will. "I was supposed to…"

"I know darlin, but you weren't." Mark's voice was soft and soothing behind her but it did little to calm her nerves. It must've been shock. The longer Cassie stared at the hole in the ground the less she felt. "I'm gonna call this in." Mark went on when she didn't acknowledge him and turned away punching numbers into his cell phone.

How the hell did this happen? How could she not have seen the signs? The truck on the road, the stranger asking about her in the diner… Jesus! She knew it was him but she didn't do anything! How fucking stupid was she? Houston was no different! He'd found her in Mesa, he'd found her in Albuquerque and before that it was Knoxville and Dayton and Kansas City and Boston. What part of her had thought Texas would be safe?

"Baby girl?" Cassie gasped as Mark's voice shook her out of her dark thoughts and whirled toward him.

"Uh…yeah?" She sniffed and did her best to wipe the wetness off her face nonchalantly.

"Sheriff's on his way. He wants us to stay put for statements." He hoped getting down to business might bring back a semblance of normalcy. Cassie nodded but her eyes weren't focused. She was shaking so hard, Mark thought she was going to chatter her teeth out of her skull. Sighing heavily, he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her trembling shoulders.

At first, she stiffened and then collapsed into him, sobs wracking her body as her world disintegrated from under her. "Shhh…" The big man cooed and gently stroked her long dark hair. "You're alright angel. You're alright."


End file.
